Family Times
by BlackRabbit0
Summary: Rin, a young girl who is Tsuna's daughter, lives life in her grandma's house. However, Rin resents her father for never being around when she and her younger sister were growing up, and now a certain hitman has shown up and thus the past repeats itself...
1. Family Times Chapter 1

"Onee-chan… Wake up…"

The fourteen year old brunette rolled in bed and hid under the covers. "Five more minutes… Tiramisu…" "Mou… Onee-chan…"

The dark green haired girl sighed and opened the curtains. "Guess I resort to that…" She walked to the other side of her bed and cracked her knuckles. "Wake up already!" She growled as she pushed her older sister out of bed. The teen landed face down on the blue carpet still half-awake.

"I'm up… I'm up…" She groaned.

"You're gonna be late for school. Look," She pointed at the clock on the desk.

"Crap, I'm late!"

"But I'm not~" 10-year old Tsuki teased. "Rin-nee-chan should get up. You only have ten minutes to run to school,"

"Only 10 minutes?" Rin jumped to her feet and rushed to change into her school uniform. Tsuki sat on the edge of her bed and watched as her sister fumble with her tie and pants. Rin grabbed her bag and ran to the stairs only to trip on the carpet and fall. Tsuki stared at the lump that was sister whining pathetically on the wooden floor.

"Onee-chan, you okay?"

"Oh, just peachy…" She said sarcastically.

Nana peeked out from the kitchen. "Oh, Rin-chan! Again?"

"Yeah…" She answered. She stood back up and slipped her boots on. "I'm off!" She started running to Nami-chuu past the Chihuahua and other people walking to school.

"Rinny-chan!" Rin stopped to turn right when Remilia hug-attacked her, knocking her to the ground.

"M-Morning Remmy-chan…" Rin breathed.

"Morning~. You're early today."

"What? Tsuki-chan said I…" Wait, _Tsuki_ said it. Rin facepalmed and sighed at her own stupidity. "Another Tsuki Trick…"

Remilia snickered and smirked at her friend. "Nice job." She commented. Rin rolled her eyes and picked up her bag.

"C'mon, enough fun at my expense," She groaned.

**At school…**

"Amano-san, solve this problem on the board,"

"H-Hai!" She walked to the board and took the chalk in her left hand. "32 Pi, right?" She asked.

He looked in his book and nodded. "Correct, Amano-san. Have a seat,"

She sat back down and sighed. The math was easy as usual and she just yawned. She stared out the window and outside in the quad, she can see Kyoi Murasaki patrolling with the committee. He always had this scary look on his face for as long as she's known him. _Murasaki-senpai's outside again… Does that guy ever go to class?_ Then something caught her eye. She saw a figure standing in the gates, a fedora shielding his eyes and his hand in his pocket. He looked up at Rin's window and smirked.

"So that's her, huh? She's sure grown…" Rin rubbed her eyes and looked again. No one was there… At least not anymore… The bell rung, snapping her out of her daze. People stood up and walked out of the classroom with their lunches in their hands.

"Rin-san, Remilia-san, wanna eat up on the roof?" Viola asked.

"Sure," Remilia answered.

"Yeah, why not?"

"H-Hang on a sec, please," The three girls looked up at the person who was approaching them. "I hate to ask, but can one of you guys take these papers to the teacher's lounge? I forgot to give it to Nakamura-sensei…" Mori Takasu, class president and Rin's crush. He created the red stain Rin's cheeks, but was completely oblivious to it times before and now.

"Sure, I'll take it," Rin responded eagerly. She took the stack of papers in her hands and smiled.

"Thanks so much Amano-san!" He turned on his heel and walked out the door.

"I'll see you guys on the roof later," Rin said as she moved out the door.

Remilia sighed and shook her head. "I swear, she's heads-over-heels for that guy…"

"Name three girls that aren't," Viola laughed.

Remilia held up three fingers. "Me, you and my little sister," She answered bluntly.

Viola just blankly stared at the brunette and sighed. "Let's just go eat lunch…"

**Meanwhile with Rin…**

"Man… I'm starting to get hungry…" Rin groaned at the sound of her stomach. It was practically barking at her to feed it. "I'll make it fast," She muttered in a huff, making a sharp running turn around the corner. Before she knew it, she crashed into someone and papers scattered on the tiles with people staring.

"Ah…! Perche non guardare dove stai andando?" Rin stood up and grabbed the person's hand.

"I'm so sorry!" She pulled up the student and bowed in apology. She had a better look at him and saw that the tips of his hair were black and his eyes were a dark blue. _A new student…? He looks pretty cool… Wait, what am I doing? I gotta get this done! _ She picked up the mess in a hurry and ran to the teacher's lounge

. The foreign student clicked his tongue. "Non puo essere lei…" _T_

_hat was so weird… Since when did we have a new student? He was speaking Italian too…_ Rin finished the errand and headed straight to the roof with her lunch. She told Viola and Remilia about what just happened and they said that they had no idea about the new student.

"I'm the source of info at this school. I would've known if we had a new student," Viola pointed out.

"I guess... But he was so rude. Saying things like 'Why don't you watch where you're going?'"

Remilia stared at her in awe and Viola stared in disbelief.

"What?" The brunette asked.

"Y-You actually understood th-that…" Remilia stuttered, pointing her chopsticks at her best friend.

"So?"

"So? You said that the guy was speaking Italian. You speak Japanese and the last time I checked this is a school that teaches Japanese and English." Viola explained as she stretched Rin's cheeks.

Rin shrugged and Viola let go. "Well judging by how he said it, he probably said that. Not entirely sure,"

"… No further comment," Viola responded.

Rin stuck her tongue teasingly and laughed. Later during that day, Rin went with Remilia to baseball practice just to watch. It was always amazing seeing Remilia bat. There's been some occasions where the ball never did make it back at all. Rin usually came just to wait for Remilia to finish up so they could get some coffee later. Instead, her phone had other plans waiting for her.

_I love you~ You love me~ We're one happy fami-_

"Geh! Remmy-chan, did you change my ringtone again?" Rin barked.

Remilia looked back after hitting the ball clean over the fence. "Yup! Like it?" She asked with a smug smirk.

"No, I do not," Rin responded as she answered.

"Hello?" "Onee-chan, it's almost time for dinner."

"It is?" Rin checked her watch and found that she was right. "Alright, I'm coming," She hung up and shouted at Remilia that she was leaving.

"Alright, guess I'll see you tomorrow," Remilia swung the bat again, but narrowly missed the ball. She sharply took in some air and stance herself again.

"Good luck!"

**At home…**

"I'm home~"

No one answered, but she can hear talking from the living room. She crept towards the living room and looked through a crack in the door.

"They've gotten big now, haven't they?" A man spoke. It certainly wasn't Tsuna, but who was it exactly?

Nana nodded and smiled. "You've gotten big yourself, Reborn-kun,"

"Ne, Uncle Reborn. Why'd you come here?" Tsuki asked.

"You'll see. Where's Rin?" He asked.

Tsuki bit the tip of her thumb and thought. "Onee-chan should be home by now…"

Rin was somewhat confused by what was going on. Since when did they have an Uncle Reborn? Was it one of the things she forgot? It can't be, she remembers everyone she met.

"Come out of there,"

The brunette cringed and slowly came out of hiding. "I-I'm home…?" She forced a chuckle as she opened the door.

"Welcome home. Rin-chan, this is Reborn," Nana introduced.

She bowed politely. "N-Nice to meet you, Reborn-san,"

He frowned and glanced at Nana. "So she really doesn't know?"

Nana shook her head with a disappointed face. "I'm afraid that Tsuna and Kyoko haven't said anything about it,"

"I see…" He stood and started walking towards the kitchen. "Well let's have dinner shall we?"

"Uh… Grandma, who is he?" Nana simply smiled and clapped her hands together.

"An old friend of mine, don't worry about it!"

"I feel like I should worry anyways…"

Dinner was livelier than the usual silence. Reborn was catching up with Nana and filling her in about Italy and how the Vongola Company was doing. Rin rolled her eyes at the mention of that name and ate in bitter silence.

"The Vongola's doing well. Tsuna's been a little too busy though,"

"As usual…" Rin muttered. Reborn raised a brow at her and opened his mouth to speak. Right when he found the words, Rin stood up and put her plate in the sink. "I'm going to do homework. G'night,"

"Rin-chan…"

She walked up the stairs and locked the door to her room, doing her homework in bed with the volume on her MP3 as loud as she can handle. Nana sighed and smiled sadly for Reborn. "Don't mind her; she's been like that for a while. Whenever Tsuna comes up in a conversation, she gets distant and upset."

"Onee-chan doesn't like Papa that much. It gets me worried sometimes…"

Reborn pondered and locked his fingers together. "Perhaps what I came for could be of use here…"

"So does that mean you're staying?" Tsuki asked excitedly. He nodded.

"I'll tutor Rin into shape, kid," Tsuki ran around the table and tackle-hugged Reborn. Reborn stared at her and smiled. Looking at Tsuki gave him a faint nostalgic reminder.

**The next day…**

A lovely way to start the day: Listen to your granddaughter and student fall down the stairs yelping in the pain.

"How often does that happen?" Reborn asked as he took a sip of espresso.

"Almost every morning." Nana smiled. The hitman smirked.

"She's just like Tsuna, maybe clumsier,"

"Mou, one-chan… You need to be more careful…"

Rin stood up and walked in the kitchen with Tsuki behind her. "Morning, grandma. …Uncle Reborn…?" She asked reluctantly.

"Nice to see you remember my name,"

"Right… Anyways, I have clean-up duty so I'm off," She grabbed a piece of toast and bit down on the corner as she ran out the door. "Bye grandma, bye Tsuki-chan!" She had a running start into the cool morning and figured that she might have time to just take it easy and walk. Sadly, she could never take it easy…

"Whoa, hey there kid," A group of 3rd year thugs approached her as she finished off the jam-smothered toast. "Don't you know you shouldn't be walking alone? You might get mugged." He smirked, grabbing her arm so tight to the point that her bone might shatter.

"Let me go. Now," She demanded.

"Now don't be like that,"

_Click_

They all looked in the same direction at an oncoming figure. One hand was in his pocket and the other had a pistol pointed up at the sky. "Eat lead,"

The group started to panic and took a few steps back. "Whoa, man! W-We were just kidding!"

"Hn." He smirked and pulled the trigger. The gun roared and the bullet missed its mark leaving Rin to fall back with a piece of lead in her forehead.

_What the hell was that…? Reborn shot me… If I had known that all this would've happened… I would've just kept running to school like my life depended on it… What a waste._

The thugs were even more riled up. "Oh my god, he shot her! He freakin' killed her!" The lackey shrieked.

"C-Calm down! Just walk away and act like we were nev-"

"Boss, look!"

Slowly Rin started to burst out of her clothes, an orange flame burning over her forehead and heart. She bore nothing more than a tank top and underwear, her eyes fierce and bright orange. "REBORN!"

"Holy crap, this girl's crazy!"

"I'll get to school like my life depends on it!" Her bag was still in her hands and it ended up being used as a weapon against the fail gangsters. "Out of my way!" Damn did she seem savage. Rin ran all the way to school, catching the eyes of a few other students. Even after getting hit by a bus, she kept going and going.

_W-What's going on? My body… It feels really light and strong. More importantly… Why the hell am I in my freakin' underwear?_

"K-Kyoi-san… Look…" The committee vice-president pointed at Rin charging at them.

Murasaki raised a brow and held out a set of five cards. "A trouble-maker…?" His voice was calm and smooth, nearly sultry.

"I've got no time for you!" She growled, pushing him out of the way.

Murasaki didn't lose his balance, but he did seem rather pissed and amused at the same time. "Hoh~? That's one brave troublemaker," He chuckled. "Vice-President, find out what class she's in," He ordered as he picked up her bag's beat-up tag. "Yes sir!" "Let's see how strong she is…" He smirked deviously, tossing the tag lightly in his hands.


	2. Family Times Chapter 2

"Made it on time!"

Viola turned around, startled at the deep voice that was her friend. One look at the fact that she was in her underwear and out of uniform nearly made her drop the vase. "R-Rin-san, what's going on?"

The flame soon disappeared before she could take any further action and Rin just froze at what just happened. "I… I'm gonna… Go to the locker rooms… Get my gym clothes…"

Viola nodded uneasily and set the vase down, not letting an eye off the brunette. "Right… You do that…"

Rin ran as quick as her legs can carry her and slammed the door behind her in the locker room. "T-Too close… What was that all about…? Running in my underwear, was I even thinking?" She sunk down to the floor and hugged her knees. "Now how am I gonna explain this to the people who saw…?" She suddenly heard the sound of fabric being dropped in front of her and looked up.

"Fixed it for you,"

"Reborn-san?" Hey wait a sec, she's still in her underwear… "Oh crap!" She yelped, nearly biting her tongue as she grabbed her uniform.

The hitman smirked and turned around respecting her need for privacy as she put her clothes on. "So how was your first time being Deathperate?" He asked. Rin raised a brow as she buttoned her shirt.

"Deathperate?" she parroted. "What's that?"

Reborn held up a red bullet. "See this bullet right here? It's a Deathperation bullet. It's also known as the dying will bullet. When shot, the target dies then revives if they have a regret, putting them in Dying Will mode."

"Dying will mode? Now you're talking crazy,"

"Then explain your strength. A person in dying will mode has their external limiters removed and is stronger than usual. Now think. Could you really take those guys down with just your school bag alone without the bullet?"

Rin opened her mouth to speak, but then ended up biting her tongue in the end. "I… I really don't know anything about this. I'm going to class, bell's gonna ring soon," She walked out of the locker room and made way to class, leaving a hitman in alone in the dark room.

He smirked and looked in the mirror. "So much like Tsuna yet so different," He commented quietly.

Class lessons were yet another bore. Rin had fallen asleep, Remilia was dozing off occasionally catching herself before hitting the desk and Viola was just staring blankly at her notebook. The teacher even seemed bored by his own lesson simply dragging the chalk on the board. Suddenly the silence was broken by the sound of a door opening. Heads turned and started to whisper across the room, shaking in fear.

"Ne… Why is Murasaki here…?"

"Oh, boy… We're screwed…"

The raven haired teen walked to the teacher, now wide awake and attentive. They spoke quietly, leaving the class in the dark and fear. Nakamura-sensei nodded and pointed to a certain direction. Remilia was now awake and caught eye of this. She looked in the direction where he was heading and saw that Rin was still sleeping in his path. "Shoot!" She quickly leaned and violently shook her awake. "Rinny-chan, wake up or you're napping in dirt!" She whispered harshly.

Rin slowly stirred, hardly looking up with her tired eyes and slowly sat up.

"What…? I was dreaming about tiramisu…" She muttered sleepily.

"Yo, troublemaker,"

In an instant, Rin knew she's as good as gone. She swallowed the saliva that built up in her mouth and nearly broke out in cold sweat. "Y-Yes…? S-Senpai, what's up?" She forced a chuckle.

He slammed a palm on her desk in response, knocking her pencil pouch and notebooks off the desk. "You. Me. Afterschool in the gym."

"W-Why? What'd I do…?" It suddenly clicked in her head. While she was running to school, she just pushed Murasaki away. Crap, she committed suicide while running like her life depended on it. Oh, the irony… "Murasaki-senpai… If it's about this morning…"

"I'm looking forward to see how strong you really are." He added.

"Eh?" "If you have the guts to try and shove me like that surely you have the guts to try and fight me."

Rin nearly fell out of her seat and just kept stammering, trying to find the right thing to say. The others in the room were staring and started whispering about how Rin would just break after two seconds with him. Everyone was in agreement: She's as good as screwed. "But… This morning…"

"If you run, we _will_ hunt you down and you will be punished." He soon walked out of the room and slammed the door behind him, leaving a terrified Rin and a pale classroom behind.

"Rinny-chan…? You okay? You look really pale…"

"Remmy-chan… I'm about to die… Better yet if I'm pale then I'm already dead."

The bell rang, ending the day for teachers and students alike. However Rin can't go home content and ready to rest. No, instead she has to fight against the one person that the police and SWAT team fear altogether. She sat in her desk alone in the room in the shade away from sunlight and let out a slow exhale. Rin can see people going into the gym, shouting and laughing. No duh they're there to watch Rin's death.

"Don't you have a fight to get to?" She slowly turned and sighed.

"What do you want, Reborn?"

"You didn't show up in the gym. Are you running from the fight?"

"I don't know. If I run, I'm screwed. If I fight, I'm freakin' screwed. Either way, I'll end up in a casket,"

"Then go fight." Rin stood up and glared at him.

"You just don't get it do you? Because of you and your bullet, I have to fight Murasaki-senpai." She sat on the floor, hugging her knees. "I should be at home, helping Grandma and Tsuki…"

"… Would you really go back home to them, bringing danger with you? If you run from this fight, Murasaki would hound you like there's no tomorrow."

Rin's lips parted slightly and she bit her lip. "I suppose… But… I really don't want to fight anyone. Every time I come home with an injury, Tsuki gets worried."

"Is that why you quit tai kwon do?"

"Now how do you know about that?" She hissed.

Reborn smirked and flicked his hat up. "You know… Sometimes a man fights for his pride. If not his pride, then it's his loved ones."

The teen stood up and let out a tired sigh. "I guess… Plus if I run…" She looked out the window again and saw Remilia and Viola talking outside with a worried furrow in their brows. "…Remmy-chan would get more grief than she should." She walked out the door and made way to the gym. Anxiety built up in her, making her blood pressure rise.

"Rinny-chan… Are you sure you want to do this?" Remilia asked.

_Her eyes are full of worry again. Man… I never thought I'd have to do this again…_

"Just do me a favor," She started. Rin took off a silver, round locket and placed it in her hands. "Take good care of it, please. I still don't remember who gave it to me, but I have this feeling it's important,"

Remilia sighed and patted her shoulder. "Look I'm not going to say something like 'I believe in you' or 'You can do it'. All I'll say is this: I'll have an ambulance ready for you."

Rin's brow twitched and she forced a smile. "I see… Nice to see how things work around here,"

"It's always worked like this," Remilia winked. Rin sighed in defeat and smirked.

"I guess. Well, I'm going in,"

"Good luck. Hope you make it out alive."

In the gym, Murasaki's group was prepping the gym for the fight, pushing the crowd of students against the wall and setting out the mats.

"Kyoi-san!"

The teen turned and looked up from shuffling his deck. "What, vice-president?"

"Amano-san has arrived." He stated. Murasaki smirked quietly and slipped his deck into the box on belt. He stepped on the mat, his arms folded across his chest and his eyes piercing into Rin. "I see you decided to show up, troublemaker."

"I'm not doing this because you challenged me." Rin stated, trying to hide the fear in her heart. Murasaki's lips were slightly agape and a brow was raised. "I'm only doing this for my friends so don't get the wrong idea,"

"That doesn't matter to me. I just wanted to know if you were strong or just foolish," He slipped out a hand of four aces and smirked hungrily. "Let's see what you can do,"

Rin sighed and took her boots off, stepping on the mat and readied herself for the fight that might do her in.

"I'll start," Murasaki said quickly. With a flick of the wrist, cards flew past Rin before she could even blink, leaving slits in her clothes and on her cheek.

"What the…?"

"Rin, do something or else you're dead!" Viola shouted.

Rin turned to see a barrage of cards soaring through the air, making a clean path towards her. She screamed, expecting to be killed until she felt a strange warmth on the skin of her forehead and found herself falling and hitting the ground with a heavy thud. The audience of fellow classmates were shouting and screaming in horror as she dropped dead.

"Amano-san!"

"What's happening?"

"Rinny-chan!"

"Someone get the nurse!" Mori shouted.

_So I'm gonna die? I can't die here… Tsuki-chan… and Remmy-chan too… If I had just tried to defeat Murasaki-senpai…_

"Reborn!" With a new will to live for her friends, she ripped out of her uniform yet again with a bright orange flame burning on her head and heart, her eyes changing from those huge brown pools to savage orange. "I'll take down Murasaki-senpai like my life depends on it!" She swung jabs out at him, catching him off-guard, giving him no room to strike back. He smirked, feeling somewhat satisfied that she's putting up a good fight.

"Hoh~? You seem different. You might be a worthy opponent after all," He commented as he blocked every jab possible. He slipped a hand to his deck and sliced at her swiftly and clean. He didn't waste a movement nor a second. When he pushed her far enough, he threw yet another set of spades and diamonds at her.

"This is nothing!" She yelled as she ran through the storm of cards. She dove and slid between his legs and tried to strike from behind.

"Too slow!" He sneered as he slammed his elbow into her face. Even the students felt the blow in their own faces. Rin fell both out of dying will mode and out of consciousness. Murasaki, satisfied and tired, fixed his tie and slipped his cards back into his deck. "Guess I was wrong." His eyes shifted up to the clock and he let out a relaxed yawn. "Vice-President,"

"Yes sir!" He saluted.

"Clean up the mess here. I'm going to sleep," He ordered.

"Right! You heard the man!"

Meanwhile with Rin, Remilia and Viola loomed over her with worried faces. Her nose was bleeding and she seemed to be developing a black eye.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Viola asked.

"I hope…"

Mori ran over to the girls and knelt down beside her body. "I'll take her to the nurse," He piggy-backed her and slowly made way to the nurse's office. As he walked out the door, he found a student with white hair in a hoody and jeans. Mori turned and flashed a bright smile at him. "You must be the new student! Was everything alright with you?"

"…" The student didn't answer. Instead his eyes were on the sleeping Rin on his back. The teen raised a brow and glanced back at Mori. "Hm? Oh, this is Rin Amano! Don't worry she'll be fine. I hope to see you in Nami-chuu uniform tomorrow!" He grinned as he ran back to the main building.

The white-haired teen stood there and sighed. There was a faint smirk on his face as he watched the two teens. "Mi chiedo se lei si ricorda di me..."


	3. Family Times Chapter 3

"Mafia?" Rin was now at home. Not much damage from the fight minus some loose teeth here and there.

"That's right. The Vongola Company is actually a mafia family and you're the candidate for the next boss."

Rin just stared at him, not buying a single word he says. "And this Vongola family… My dad's a part of it?"

Reborn shrugged. "You could say that."

"My dad can't even lead himself to his own room without hurting himself somehow. If he could be a part of prestigious family then I must be in a mental asylum,"

"Think what you want, but you really are a candidate to lead the Vongola."

Rin sighed and figured it may as well be true with everything that just happened. "Can't someone else lead it? I mean… I fall down the stairs daily. Do you really think I can lead the Vongola?"

"There's no choice. The others are…" Reborn made a motion, cutting his neck with his finger, ending it with a single click of his tongue. "You get it?"

"… Yes… But that doesn't explain why you're here,"

"I'm here as a tutor for you. I have orders to whip you into a mafia boss,"

Rin nearly choked on her soda when she heard this and cough violently. "N-No way! Mafia involves murders! I can't handle a life like that!"

"Not now at least," Reborn stood up and walked out of her room.

"Get to bed, you have school tomorrow," He shut the door leaving a miffed Rin glaring at the door. Reborn smirked and petted little Leon gently. "Odd, she says that she doesn't want to be a part of the Vongola since the mafia involves murder, but she's currently giving off a murderous aura."

The next morning started as usual with Rin tripping down the stairs again in a rush. "Tsuki-chan, I can see you laughing at me," She stated. She got up and dusted her clothes off and headed out the door without breakfast yet again. "See you later!"

"Have a safe trip!" Tsuki cheered. She didn't even reach the first corner and she's already got a poke surprise from Remilia.

"Morning~" She sang.

"Aye… Don't poke me…"

"But your reaction's funny," Remilia rebutted playfully. "Can't talk long, got baseball practice, see ya!"

Rin waved bye to her perky best friend and sighed tiredly. Why can't it be the weekend already?

Rin had gotten to class earlier than usual and caught up on sleep even after the bell had rung.

Viola looked and sighed, brushing her bangs out the way. "You really need to stop doing homework late, Rin-san…"

Nakamura walked in setting his files and plans on the table. He cleared his throat, had students sit down and opened the door. "You can come in now,"

Teens started to perk a little. Viola felt rather smug finding information before the actual date and sat in her seat, arms folded across her chest and a proud grin adorning her face.

"Class we have an exchange student."

The new kid walked in and stood in front of everyone with a cold expression.

"This is Gray Hoseki and-" Nakamura sighed in irritation and picked up a piece of chalk. "Amano-san!" A little piece of hard white powder left a dusty mark on Rin's forehead and gave her a nasty wake up call.

"A-Ah…?"

"Amano-san perhaps you can show our new student around during lunch."

Rin yawned and sat up straight, still groggy and lazy. "Uh sure… I guess…" She mumbled lazily. The brunette hardly paid attention to what Nakamura was talking about. The class acted in a hushed laugh and snickers. Rin looked around, somewhat confused and still half-awake. "So what's going on…?"

Remilia sighed and was ready to flick Rin in the head until Gray walked right between them. She moved and peeked from behind him mouthing to Rin "You're giving him a tour at lunch."

"Eh…?" She looked up at the taller teen and smiled awkwardly. "I'm Rin Amano. Nice to meet you?" She laughed, trying to break the ice. "You're Hoseki-kun right?"

Hoseki raised a brow and felt rather annoyed by her. "Perché mi stai chiamando dal mio cognome?" She stared at him blankly and was already more confused than she should've been from the beginning. He let out a tired sigh and made a move to his seat. "Questo sara interessante..."

Rin took a last glance at him and looked back at Remilia who just shrugged and shifted back to her original position. Rin looked at Hoseki again and shuddered. He was giving her this scowl all the way from the back of the row and it was mostly towards her. She gulped and nervously waved at him then quickly focused on the boring but less scary lesson.  
>"Fwah~ Time for lunch!" Rin cheered, stretching her arms up in the air.<p>

Remilia wagged her finger in rhythm with her triple 'tsks'. "Did someone forget their punishment?"

"Nakamura-sensei told you to give Hoseki-san a tour of the school," Viola reminded her.

Rin looked at the white-haired teen in the back was sloppily writing something in his notebook. She wasn't so sure about this. Hoseki looks like a person who could bite her head clean off if provoked. Either way she swallowed her pride and fear and approached him. "Hoseki-kun." He looked up at her and stood up, understanding that it was time for his tour. Girls stared as Hoseki and Rin walked out of the room, eyes envious and their mouths muttering foul words towards Rin.

"Damn that bitch... First she gets challenged Murasaki-senpai and now she's giving Hoseki-sama a tour... Why is it always her?"

Ah? The air got really cold... And does anyone else sense a dark demonic aura?

"Hoh~ You've got some nerve calling Rinny-chan a bitch." Remilia cracked her knuckles and her eyes were lit like a demon's. "I'm giving you five seconds to either run or take it back," In the end, they needed IV fluid and blood transplants. Remilia was happy and smug as she ate her lunch with a disturbed Viola.

"And this is the courtyard. Not much to see but trees, but it's a nice place to eat lunch." Rin explained as she took the new student around the school. She was feeling nervous. She's crashed into him once, got a nasty scowl from him and so far he probably insulted her in his native language. Her eyes fell on her watch and she turned and faced him. "That's pretty much the whole school. Anyways, lunch is almost over so why don't we go eat?" She suggested trying to lighten the mood.

He didn't answer. His eyes were just staring at her intently.

"I guess you don't understand me, huh?" She forced another laugh.

"No, I do. I just don't have much to say," He answered for once in Japanese.

Rin was just blankly staring at him with a confused smile. "Ah... I see... Then why were you speaking Italian this entire time?"

He shrugged. "Force of habit," He answered. Hoseki shot a glare at her and frowned. "For you not to know your own home language... So pathetic... How can you be the Vongola XI candidate?"

"Hm?"

_How does he know that...?_

"More importantly, you have this blank look on your face it's rather annoying. With an idiotic girl like you..."

_Idiotic?_

"...the family will fall. I won't accept that," He pulled a short stick of dynamite and tossed it lightly, letting it spin in the air. "I'll see you in hell,"

"E-Eh?" She fell back from tripping over her own foot. "An explosive? H-How?"

"I see you two met. A little earlier than I thought though," Both teens looked up at the tall, mysterious hitman who was just striding through the scene.

"Reborn-san! You know him?"

Reborn smirked obviously. "Of course. I was the one who paid for his plane ticket here,"

Rin gulped and stared back at Hoseki. "Then this guy... He's part of the Vongola?"

"Yup. I heard Gokudera took on a student, but I've never met him until now,"

Hoseki backed down and took Reborn to mind. "So you're Decimo's former tutor. Can't recognize you in that form with all the pictures I've seen."

"And from what Gokudera told me, you're quite a prodigy, almost a mirror image of him,"

He answered with a smirk and turned his attention to the brunette on the ground. "I can't trust her to lead the family so mind of I take the title?"

"Go ahead," Reborn allowed.

"So you're going to let me die?" Rin hissed. "I thought you were my tutor!"

"If you don't want to die then fight." Rin puffed her cheeks and she was turning red. "I refuse! You should know my reasons!" She turned to run but was quickly stopped by an explosion that came from underground. "W-What in the world?"

"Gray Hoseki's an explosive expert. He keeps a number of different explosives hidden on his body and quick to use them," Reborn explained calmly.

"They call me the Gray-more Storm in Italy," Gray stated. (Note: It's just a word pun after the claymore mine –sigh-... Me and my bad jokes)

Rin stood there trying to figure out an escape route until she heard familiar voices coming closer her way.

"I'm sure she's around here..."

"I'm sorry to bug you while you were eating, Yamamto-san."

Her eyes shot up to her best friends and crush walking together towards explosive danger. "Remmy-chan! Takasu-san!"

They both looked up and smiled. "There she is!"

Hoseki sighed and glanced back at them, flicking sticks of dynamite at the two. The explosives clattered hollowly and sparked. Remilia picked one up, examining it closely. "What's this?"

"R-Remmy-chan, put that out, hurry!" Rin shouted.

"Put what out?" Mori asked cluelessly.

"Takasu-san!"

He laughed lightly and flashed a bright smile. "Just call me Mori if you please and I'll call you Rin-chan."

"Then Mori-kun, Remmy-chan, drop the thing and run!"

Reborn shook his head in disappointment and sighed as he brought Leon down from his hat. The shape-memory chameleon changed and became his signature pistol, a bullet waiting down the barrel. "You're just like him after all. You really should re-think your opinion..." He pointed the pistol at her, letting the hammer drop. "Go wild." The bullet was fired into Rin's head and she started to fall and die away.

"REBORN!" Fabric torn off, revealing her underwear again: a clear sign she was back in dying will mode. "I'LL SAVE REMMY AND MORI LIKE MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!"

"Rinny-chan's in her underwear..." She slowly started to cover Mori's eyes to save her from further embarassment. "Mori-kun's not supposed to see this..."

"Out!" Rin screamed as she smothered every spark with her hand.

"Tch..." Gray took out more dynamite, but before he could even light them, Rin knocked into him, trying to put out the dynamite at his feet. The teen skidded in the dirt, triggering the second mine's alarm. "C-Crap!" The beeping resonated and the tempo quickened. He was too scared to move. He was betrayed by his own weapons.

"Out of way!" Rin growled as she tackled Hoseki. She managed to save him though. The mine imploded, kicking the dirt up high in the air. Rin fell out of dying will mode once she felt the heat of the explosion breathing down her skin. The mine was small and they were lucky that no one showed up to see what was going on. Although...

"Hm?" Son stopped in his tracks at the shouts he could hear from the wall bordering Nami-chuu. He peeked over the wall, standing on a pile of boxes just sitting there. "What's going on?" He adjusted his glasses to get a better look and instead...

"Out of the way!" He watched in horror as Rin attacked Hoseki as the ground imploded. The earth shook and the boxes under his feet gave away. He groped around for a lens that popped out and popped it back it. "Man, what was my mother thinking moving to a town like this?" He ran off screaming in the distance, catching the eyes of bystanders walking about.

"Th-Thank goodness..." Rin sighed in relief. "Hoseki-kun, are you hurt?" She panicked.

Gray just stared into her big brown eyes with a real stupified look on his face that soon faded into a gentle smile. "Gomen... I gave you a lot of trouble, didn't I?" He helped her up and put his blazer on her shoulder. "I lost so..." He bowed politely as if he was a butler. "I owe you my life, hime-sama."

Blood rushed to Rin's face and she started to turn red. She shot up to Remilia who was still covering Mori's eyes and smirking at her.

"Rinny-chan~ I didn't know you could blush..." Remilia teased.

"R-Remmy-chan!" She turned her focus back to Hoseki. "Hoseki-kun, it's fine really! I-I have no interest in being a mafia boss so can we just be friends?" She suggested nervously with a faltering smile.

"Hime-sama is hime-sama so I'm afraid not," He said in a menacing voice.

_K-Kowai... _

"Ah! It's Yamamoto and Amano!"

"Mou, those damn sluts! Amano's in her underwear too!"

Rin and Remilia exhanged looks and sighed dejectedly. "Again..."

"Good grief..." Remilia sighed, shaking her head.

Hoseki stood up with an aggressive grin on his lips. "Allow me, hime-sama..." He reached into his pocket and pulled a dark green grenade marked with a skull and crossbones.

"H-Hoseki-kun, it's fine!"

"Are you playing a war game or something? Kindly leave me out of it," Remilia sighed. She was never one for war.

"It'll just be a second, don't worry." And thus the day ends with a grand bang and another witness.

"Again? Man this place never seems to be quiet." Naoto peeked over the gate and lazily glanced around.

"Go to hell!" Hoseki shouted as he threw the grenade at the group of girls.

The blowback knocked Naoto off and on his bum in the streets. "Man... That guy's such a vulgar creature attacking women like that. If I see him, I'll give him basic lessons..." He sighed.


	4. Family Times Chapter 4

**A/N: The real chapter 4 is pretty pointless so this is technically chapter 5. Here on FF it's Chapter 4 and on Deviantart it's Chapter 5. The real chapter four was just a point amusement park trip where Lambo's young cousin, 6-year Rima Rosa and her friend 6-year old Lining tries to assassinate Rin under orders of the Sanguerosa Family. They were taken in by Rin, her grandmother and her little sister in the end, but Rin ended up in the hospital. No relation to the story, just an intro plot for the kid. If you want to read it, then go to deviantart... Sorry guys D: **

"Alright class settle down and have a seat. We have a new student today."

The clamor of the classroom was quickly hushed as the teacher briskly walked in, settling his papers on his desk. He opened his mouth to call in the new kid when he looked up and saw our trio somewhat asleep and lacking focus.

"Amano!"

Rin's eyes snapped open. "H-Hai!"

"Yamamoto!"

Remilia jumped and nearly fell out of her seat. "S-Sorry!"

"Hoseki!"

The teen looked up. "What?"

He sighed in irritation. "Wake up and pay attention."

The three sighed. "Yes sir…"

Rin couldn't help but mentally blame the late-night camping trip that the hitman dragged them on. Needless to say that it was one hell of a sleepless night. Being forced to come to the school the next day only made things even worse. Not to mention the pounding headache she had… The girl's on the verge of crashing completely.

"Alright you can come in."

The door slid opened and eyes peered to see the new face that would arrive. Dressed in the beige uniform, hair tied in a messy pony tail and light blue eyes, the new girl walked in, timid and reserved. People couldn't pull their eyes off her as she walked. It could've been the gentle lavender color of her hair or the black ribbon tying her hair back flowing gently like a dream. Either way the air around this girl was almost completely harmless.

"Whoa…"

"My kind of girl."

Rin looked up and was just somewhat stunned at the little beauty.

iSo this is the new girl? She's really pretty like Aunt Chrome. /i

The girl shyly stared from under her bangs at the class.

"Class this is Shiroi Hotaru. Hotaru, if you have something you want to say, then say it."

The girl was quiet and she averted her eyes towards the door for a moment. She sent to her seat on the other end of the room. The girl sat down staring quietly at her desk, unmoving and shy. It was almost as if she was afraid to look up.

The bell signaled the end of class and lunch started with the sound of chairs scraping and bento boxes opening. Rin looked up as the group of guys swarming Hotaru and honestly she felt bad for her.

"Well look at that. Amano and Yamamoto aren't the ones with a bad name anymore. You're in luck."

Hoseki looked up at the cliché group of girls that often called the two sluts and such. "If you're trying to harass hime-sama…"

"Relax, we're over that. That new girl has you two beat by a mile in terms of picking up guys."

Remilia only frowned. "I see…" She stood up and walked over to Hotaru, pulling her away from the wall of boys trying to ask her out. She stood between her and her fellow classmates. "Alright listen up. You guys are scaring the poor thing swarming her like this. Now back off. Shiro-chan's not a prize or the last whatever-you-like-to-eat. I swear you guys are pigs."

The brunette stared at her best and smiled a little. "Same ol' Remilia."

"C'mon, let's go to the rooftop!" Remilia suggested. "Hurry up, you slowpokes!"

Hoseki and Rin smiled. "Hey wait up!"

On the rooftop, the weather was just fine. Not too hot, not too cold and barely breezy. They sat down with Shiroi, eating their lunches.

"You're not hungry?" Remilia asked.

She shyly looked up. "T-Thank you… for earlier…"

"Hm? Oh! It's not a big deal. It must've been scary especially since you're new here, right?" She grinned.

Hotaru nodded. "I… just moved here not that long ago…"

"Really? Then… Let's go hang out later! We'll show you around!" Remilia grinned. "Right, Rinny? Hoseki?"

Rin nodded. "Y-Yeah, I'm up for it."

"I can't leave hime-sama alone with you, bubble-nut."

Remilia snapped her chopsticks in her hands. "I said knock it off with the bubble-nut, mop-top."

The brunette sighed at the usual quarrel. "Don't mind them too much, Hotaru-chan. This is usual."

Shiroi nodded. "O-Okay…"

Rin stared at her. She really did have the same atmosphere as her Aunt Chrome. Gentle, reserved, quiet… But there also something else, but it was difficult to describe. It was like there was something unnatural about her. She shrugged off the thought. It's just the lack of sleep messing with her head. Either that or the endless training for Reborn.

After school, they moved to go to their favorite café and to show Shiroi around Namimori for a bit.

"Okay, Shiro-chan, we'll take you over to the café first. You must try the pasta, it's really good~" Remilia sang.

"Alright…" She nodded.

"But first…"

They all stopped dead in their tracks and looked around. Rin just twitched at the thought and sound of that familiar voice and tone.

"Rin need to clean up the mess you guys made on our trip." He smirked, standing on top of the wall staring down at them. He pointed his gun at her. "Have fun."

With that Rin had become wild and crazy yet again, dashing like mad to the mountains where their campsite was. Dashing like mad… in her underwear. Remilia quickly covered Shiroi's and Hoseki's eyes. "Hai~ Hoseki-kun and Shiro-chan are not supposed to look."

"H-How often does that happen?" Shiroi asked.

"To be honest, a lot so get used to it. Everyone else has." Remilia grinned. Her eyes fell on Hoseki. "Well almost everyone."

Hoseki pushed Remilia's hand off his face. "H-Hime-sama!" With that he chased after his now wild boss with concern for her health on his mind. Idiot needs to be more concerned about his own health, but that's just the narrator's thoughts.

"Eh… Guess it's just you and me, Shiro-chan."

"Y-Yeah…"

The two ate at the café talking about Namimori, the people and what and who to be aware of. "Oh, and if you want quality sushi, stop by my family's restaurant!" She added.

Shiroi nodded with a faint smile. "H-Hai…"

Remilia leaned back in her chair. "Hm… No offense, but I'm actually pretty lonely… Rinny and I always hung out here up until recently. These days she's running around like a madman in her underwear."

Shiroi tilted her head. "Really? But…"

"I don't pay much mind to it. I'm just not used to not having Rin by my side. We've been close ever since we were kids so… it's pretty hard for me to adjust."

The girl closed her eyes. "I see. Perhaps I can help…"

"Hoseki-kun, you really don't have to walk me home." Rin sighed, now wearing a long sweater and jeans.

"It's getting dark, and I don't think I can sleep knowing I could've protected you if something happened."

Rin sighed. "I swear… You just don't seem to change do you?"

They both stopped in their tracks. "W-What am I saying? We only met this year, right?" And now there's awkward silence between the two. Way to go, Rin. (Rin: I don't need you insulting me! Soul: Deal with it.)

The teen was quiet as he stared at her. Then he just continued to walk. "We should get you home soon. You must be tired after all that." Hoseki fell completely silent after saying that as he walked over to her gate.

_Did I say something wrong…?_

She quickly caught up with him to her house, but then…

"Onee-chan!" Her little sister Tsuki barged out of their front door, eyes full of tears.

"T-Tsuki, what's going on?"

Her 10 year old sister sobbed into her sister's shirt. "R-Remilia-san…! S-She's…"

"!" The brunette made an immediate dash to her place. It's never good when you hear your best friend's name from your little sister who's crying and sobbing like nuts.

_Dammit, Remmy… You better be okay… I won't forgive you if you aren't!_


	5. Family Times Chapter 5

_So Rin's always running off without you right?_

Yes…

_She always seem to be busy, huh?_

Yes…

_Do you trust her?_

Of course.

_Then what's the problem?_

I… I think I lost my place…

She stared out over the skyline of the town, the wind blowing quickly through her hair. The girl wondered why over and over. She wondered about the distance between her and her best friend. She wondered if she cared in the first place. Things have changed ever since first grade of course, but why now? Why now does it change for the worse? It makes no sense. Rin had always been there for her, but now… She's always running off somewhere in her underwear. She's always so busy now that they don't seem to have any of their usual time together. Remilia lost her shoulder to cry on and her place to vent to. Was Rin abandoning her?

"Uncle Yamamoto!" Rin busted into the sushi shop, catching the eyes and attention of customers and her grand uncle Tsuyoshi.

"Oh, Rin, what brings you here?" Tsuyoshi asked, stopping in the middle of cutting up some nice fresh tuna.

"Where's Remilia? Is she home?"

Yamamoto came out from the kitchen upon hearing the noise outside. "Rin? What's going on?"

"Uncle Yamamoto… Remilia… Where is she?" Maybe it would've been smarter to ask Tsuki where she got the call from.

"Remilia's not home, kiddo. Why? Is it another project?"

She didn't stick around long enough to answer. Instead she went and ran out of the shop, checking around the other places she could've been. She checked the cafés and the plaza, but found nothing. Just where the hell was she?

All Rin could do was panic. She knows how Remilia really feels. They were practically each others' therapists and medicine. She doesn't want to lose her best friend. Not now and not ever. She doesn't want to lose the one person that made everything fun. She didn't want to lose the person who helped her remember to protect herself first before protecting anyone else. There was no way she wanted those memories their families made to fade away just because she was gone. They were each others' other half. If one was gone then who was the other?

The brunette ran past the park, looking frantically for her friend, hoping that she was just sulking on the swings again. Sadly, that hope was quickly crushed. The swings were empty, just moving slighting with the breeze.

"Crap…" she tried to call her over and over but not once has she picked up.

"Ah, it's stupid Rin!" Rima exclaimed as she and Lining ran up to her. She grabbed onto her jeans and started to tug at her. "Did you bring anything to eat? Lining lost our allowance again."

"I did not!" He whined. He took off his bunny hat and started to shake it. Grenades, long and massive weapons and pistols all fell out of his hat along with toys and hard candy. "See? I didn't lose it." Bad logic.

"Sorry kids, I don't have anything. Have you seen Remilia though?"

Rima and Lining thought for a moment, wearing away at Rin's patience. Hurry and remember, she thought.

"Ah, that lady with the red ribbon right?" Rima asked. "Is she sick or something? She looked really dead when she walked by here."

_Dead? You're kidding me._

"W-Where is she now?" She asked. "Please guys, I really need to know where she went right now."

The kids pointed in the same direction towards the school. "Can we come too?"

"S-Sure, but first-"

"Hime-sama!"

Hoseki had finally caught up with her after a good hour of nonstop running. He tried to speak as he caught his breath. "H-Hime, what's going on?"

"Hoseki-kun… Remilia… I'm scared…"

"The bubble-nut? Your little sister… She told me what happened." He panted. "She said she got a call… and that the person said that Remilia was at the roof of the school."

Yup, she should've just stayed and asked Tsuki. "We need to hurry then! Something's definitely wrong."

Hoseki sighed. "Hime-sama, please don't think ill of me when I say this, but forget about her."

She looked at him in disbelief. "What…?"

"That bubble-nut… You had a good long run with her already and when a person gets like this, there's no going back."

Rin was silent and she didn't want to listen anymore. "Hoseki-kun, I-"

"Hime-sama, please. I'm here now and you don't need that bubble-nut anymore."

The brunette couldn't take what he saying. She doesn't need Remilia anymore? She doesn't need the one person who stuck with her through everything anymore? Like hell that was right.

"Just give it up. C'mon I'll take you ho-"

Rima and Lining wide little eyes widened more at that they saw. For a moment they even feared her as they watched Hoseki's face turning red and his eyes widen in shock.

"Hoseki-kun, let's get one thing straight. You and Remilia are my precious friends, but you guys don't get along that well one-sidedly. You know I love you guys, but this is taking things too far!"

The teen just stared at the person he loyally followed. His face was still stinging from the burn of the slap he received.

"Remilia… She really does want to be friends with you, but you won't let her. Why don't you understand that? I love you both as individuals." Tears started to prickle in her eyes. "Don't you get it…? Remilia and I… We're that pair of childhood friends that could never be separated. If something were to happen to her… Then I wouldn't be able to live with myself knowing I could've done something about it."

"Hime…"

"So please… Don't ever tell me something like that again. Hoseki-kun, I'm not favoring Remilia over you. If you were in the same situation as her right now, I'd still do the same thing. I'd cry, panic, try and help… anything to keep you guys by my side."

She had nothing more to say than that and thus she left the dumbstruck Hoseki at the park in hopes of trying to find Remilia. He didn't understand it. Why would a future mafia boss care so much about one person other than her higher-ups? He was here for her so why couldn't she just let Remilia go?

"It's because she's not thinking like a mafia boss, Gray."

He looked up at the looming figure standing next to him.

"She's like her father. Being a boss never mattered to her in the first place. She doesn't want to be the boss, but she'll do what she has to for the people she loves. I have kept note of her growth and so far she's still naïve, but at least she knows what right and wrong and her own morals. Haven't you noticed how close they are and well they get along? Remilia and Rin are like wings on a butterfly. If one breaks, the other is useless."

He wasn't so sure, but at least now he understands more of what kind of person Rin was. She wasn't someone who would abandon someone just because she doesn't care. In fact, Rin was incapable of not caring. No matter who or what it was, she could never bring herself to turn her back on it. Now why did he not notice this before? Why did he think she saved him just because she thought he'd be a good subordinate? Ah, the stupidity of the genius bomber.

"If you're still wondering what I'm talking about, then let's go see how things unfold."

"Remmy!" Rin busted through the door that opened up to the roof and looked around. She saw a slim figure standing on the ledge where the fence was busted. "Remilia, what the hell are you doing?" She ran up to the brunette.

"Stay back." Remilia warned. "I'm just something that has been abandoned."

"A-Abandoned? What are you talking about?" Rin shouted. Remilia didn't answer. She didn't even turn around. "Remilia Yamamoto, answer me!"

"Even Rinny's abandoned me… She's even yelling at me…" Her eyes were glazed over, almost cold and completely faded.

Rin just stared at her and took a step closer. "Remilia, what are you-"

"I can't turn to anyone anymore. Connie doesn't understand… Gavin's in the hospital, but he never bothered to listen in the first place and Dad… he's too carefree to get it… Then there's you, Rinny." She turned around and stared. "I thought I could trust you, but… now you're running away… all the time. Am I that much trouble? Did you only pity me…?"

"Remilia…"

She had this dark smile on her. "Don't worry… All my troubles will be cleared soon. You won't have to listen to me anymore…"

Rin stepped through the gape in the face and stepped towards Remilia. "D-Don't…" She looked down. Just falling scared her. She didn't like how far down it was and she certainly didn't like knowing what a klutz she was. She swallowed her pride, ready to do anything to get Remilia safe. "Don't say that, Remilia."

"No, I'll say it." She looked at Rin with such a warped smile as if she was almost dead already. "I'm something that's supposed to die."

Suddenly Rin ran along the ledge, grabbing Remilia by the shirt. "Now you listen here, Remilia Yamamoto! You're not going to die whether you like it or not!" She held her shirt now with both hands. "Remilia, I'm not abandoning you! I don't pity you and I don't fucking hate you!" Her chest was heaving from yelling and her head started to feel light. "Remilia, I trust you with everything. If I didn't care, would I be standing on this ledge, right now? Connie loves you, Uncle Yamamoto loves you, Gavin loves you… Remilia, you're no burden. You're my best friend and you've always been there for me… I know I've been gone at the randomness or the most crucial times, but dammit, I still care!" Tears started to well up in her eyes. Her hand furiously wiped away the tears that started to fall down her cheeks.

"Rinny…"

"Remilia, you're practically my sister… If you were gone… who can I cry to with things I could never tell anyone?" She smiled. "You can't forget everything we've been through. You just can't toss that aside… Please…"

Hearing that familiar plea again… Nostalgia rushed back in a form of flashback, back into those days where they were just little first graders in elementary school. Back in those days where it was only Remilia who was constantly being bullied by the other kids.

_Please don't cry…"_

I won't anymore.

_Please don't be scared._

I'm not, don't worry.

_Be my friend, please?"_

Sure thing!

The shorter brunette smiled with tears streaming down her cheeks. "Rinny… I'm sorry.." She tried to keep that smile, but her tears and shame wouldn't let her. "I'm sorry…! I'm so sorry!" She sobbed.

Rin smiled and grabbed her friend' hand. "Can you walk?" She asked.

She nodded quietly and took a step. However, that's when things started to go wrong. Gravity beckoned to her weight as she slipped from the concrete.

"Remilia!" Rin held tight on to her wrist and dangled off the ledge with her best friend in one hand and a rusty fence clinging to the other. "Don't let go!"

"I wouldn't dream of it!"

"Remilia!"

The two girls looked down and noticed three ant-like figures standing on the grounds below. Someone was watching them. Wait what? Why didn't they come up to stop them? Remilia looked down and let out a shaky breath, almost crying. "Dad…?"

"Remilia, Rin! Hang in there!" He shouted.


	6. Family Times Chapter 6

**Chapter 7**

"Oh we're freakin' hanging on, Dad!" Remilia snapped at Yamamoto.

"This isn't the time to be sarcastic!"

Rin's fingers were starting to slip and her pinky was first to let go. Her joints trembled numbly as she tried to hang in there and keep Remilia safe.

"Remmy, save yourself and climb."

"On you? Don't be crazy!"

"Does it look like I'm joking? Hurry up and climb or we'll both die!"

Now it was down to two fingers holding on to the rusty old fence that arched over the ledge they were both standing on earlier. Metal groaned and creaked as it slowly began to give away to gravity and the weight of two girls. Rin should've been more careful. If she had then they wouldn't have to die like this. What a horrible way to die. She can't die knowing she failed to save her best friend. It wasn't fair. One finger struggled to coil around the thin wire.

She struggled to pull Remilia up enough to bring her closer to the ledge. As she did, Reborn had caught on something. He noticed flashes of yellow and orange coming from Rin's head and chest. This was a strange phenomenon. She's definitely making progress in her training considering the fact that she's nearly able to activate her Dying Will mode on her own. She pulled Remilia up and came closer and closer to the ledge. Remilia's fingers stretched to touch the concrete, but then fate had other plans in mind. Orange and savagery quickly faded from Rin's eyes as the fence broke and they slowly started to fall. Remilia closed her eyes, scared to fall splat on the ground below and Rin's eyes filled with tears as her life flashed before her eyes.

She clearly saw that day she tried to save Tsuki from being hit by a car after she collapsed in the middle of the street. She saw the day she first met Remilia and Viola. Then the memory of the day she first fell for Takasu Mori flashed in her mind. Then there was a stranger. It was so blurry though but her heart felt warm with nostalgia.

i "Take my hand, I'll help you." The voice gently told her. /i

"Eh?" She found Remilia and herself dangling and a tightness around her wrist. She looked up and her heart skipped a beat. "H-Hoseki-kun!"

His shoulder shook has he tried to pull the two girls up. "H-Hime-sama, Bubble-nut, hang on! I've got you!"

Tears streamed down her face. After how she treated him earlier, he was still loyal and now he was saving her. Guilt filled her heart and mind as she bit her lips, trying to fight back the tears. "Hoseki-kun… I'm sorry…!"

The white-haired teen smiled at them. "Don't worry about it, hime… I was out of line. Forgive me? You too, bubble-nut?"

Rin nodded and Remilia smiled.

"Of course!"

"Forgiven, you mop-top. Now hurry up and get us on solid ground." Remilia laughed.

He managed to pull both girls up. However, they couldn't stand for so long. The lingering fear made their knees weak and their breathing shaky. Either way both girls held up a smile.

"Remmy, don't scare me like that ever again, alright?"

"Y-yeah… I'm sorry… I was stupid."

Hoseki pulled Remilia up and supported her. "We know you were." He picked up the taller brunette and supported them both at the waist. "C'mon, everyone's downstairs waiting."

"Thanks." They both flashed a brilliant smile.

Reborn pondered for a while as to why Rin was able to fall into Dying Will Mode without a bullet. Was it just lucky? It happened once with Tsuna so it might be genetics…

"Reborn, thanks for calling me." Yamamoto smiled, his brows still wrinkled in worry.

"Hm? Not a problem, Yamamoto. I'm surprised you're not calling me a kid anymore."

"How can I?" He laughed.

The door opened and emerging from the dim lights of the building were the trio, now standing a little easier than earlier. Remilia had this pathetic smile on her face as she looked up at her father. What was she going to say? She felt ashamed for feeling like this and ashamed for making everyone worried. Just what was she even thinking in the first place?

"Dad… I'm…"

Yamamoto didn't even let her finish her sentence and ran to embrace his youngest daughter. "Don't even say it, Remmy. I should be sorry…" He stroked her hair gently to comfort her. "I should've said something. I noticed something was wrong before so many times, but I always tried to smile through it just so that you would. I avoided your troubles trying to take care of you. I'm sorry, kid."

Remilia started to cry a little again and gripped at the back of her dad's jacket. "D-Don't say you're sorry…! I should be apologizing. I should've trusted you and Connie and gramps more…!"

"Uncle Yamamoto… Remmy…" Rin wiped her tears at the scene. She was always a sucker for sweet things like this. I don't blame her. Even I'm tearing up a bit as the narrator.

Hoseki looked at from the sight, trying not to notice the beauty of a father and daughter's reconcile. "C-Che…" In the end he ended up with an elbow to the rib as a gift from Rin.

Reborn smiled at the sight however it was only brief. He pointed his gun at a nearby tree, his glare nearing piercing it. "Come out." He demanded.

It was nothing but silence as all eyes fell on that oak tree in the courtyard until a figure in black collapsed from behind. He groaned and tried to crawl away until a foot was slammed into his back.

"I don't tolerate troublemakers nor rats in this school." A low, cold voice warned.

"M-Murasaki-senpai!" It was then Remilia remembered that he practically lived in the reception room at school.

He looked up at the three and then around the area, throwing more cards at the corners of the building and up in the trees. More figures in black clad fell out of place and soon it was a swarm of them surrounding the group.

Reborn looked around, analyzing the situation. "Who sent you?"

None of them bothered to answer the Arcobaleno's question.

"Hime-sama, get behind me!" Hoseki ordered as he stood in front of her.

"Remilia, you too." Yamamoto urged as he took out the Shigure Kintoki. The fine edge glistened in the dusk's light almost enchanting Remilia.

"Oi, Yamamoto. They're small fries, we shouldn't bother with them." Reborn commented. "Let the kids handle them."

He looked back at Reborn and then at Remilia and Rin. "How much training did they have?"

"More than enough to deal with this." He smirked.

"I'm not sure what you're talking about with training, but my batting's gotten better." Remilia smirked as she took out her bat.

"Whoa, where the hell did that come from?"

The brunette shrugged. "Not entirely sure, but talk about handy, right?"

Reborn! This has Reborn's name all over it!

"Hime, let's show them our strength." Hoseki smirked as he bit down on a grenade pin.

Even the kids joined in on them. "Let us play too!" Rima urged.

"E-Eh?"

"Damage the property and I'll punish you all." The prefect warned.

Rin started to panic. "N-Now wait a second, guys!"

"No time to wait." Reborn quickly cut her off, firing a bullet straight into her forehead.

She died again regretting how she could've just gone along with them and fought off the assassins. It's mafia, she should've seen this coming. The familiar flame was back, burning bright off her head and heart. She tore away from her sweater and jeans and stood standing in her tank top and underwear. "RE-BORN!"

"Whoo! Rinny's feeling fierce today!"

"Expected of hime-sama!"

Murasaki turned his back and started to pick his own fights with a set of assassins. He played his cards right as usual, no pun intended. Every single one of them dropped like flies as victims of Murasaki's card dealings. They weren't dead, but critically injured as the result of having a tendon sliced or a vein cut.

Hoseki tore the pin away from the hand grenade and quickly threw it at the group in front of him. The warmth and scent of gunpowder and dirt blew past the teen who donned a smirk. It was like a movie scene with the terminator or something like that. "Arreverderci."

Remilia wielded her bat skillfully and near-flawlessly. She bluntly struck at the guts of every single killer that came her way and was still careful not to kill them. However, they started to play dirty. One of the fallen tripped her and she fell to her knees, losing grip of her bat.

"Damn brat." One of them held a glock in his hand and pointed it at Remilia's forehead. The trigger clicked, but it was never pulled. He was quickly defeated by a simply ace of spades and the glock was confiscated by the cold man in uniform.

"I warned you alright. Do not damage school property." The prefect stared coldly at the slew of unconscious lackeys and hitmen. He then pivoted on his heels and picked up Remilia.

"I didn't need your kind of help, senpai." Remilia said, being careful of not setting him off.

"Then Rem-Rem needs us!" The kids claimed. Rima swiftly struck at the feet of her much-taller target while Lining fired his pistols at them.

He turned around and watched the main battle of the worse troublemaker of all. Rin threw wild punches and kicks that followed the movements of Tai kwon do. She even went as far as to bash her head into her opponents' and flip them over into each other. Her fighting skills has certainly improved compared to when she first started. Too bad it only applied to when she was in dying will mode.

"Go Rinny!"

"Show them the strength of the Vongola, hime-sama!"

It was nearly nightfall when every last nuisance were defeated and unconscious. Rin had fallen out of dying will mode and wore Yamamoto's jacket over her shoulders to cover herself.

"So, what will we do about this mess?" Murasaki asked, his arms folded across his chest.

Reborn smirked faintly. "We'll take care of it, Mr. Prefect." He turned to everyone else. "Well let's go home. Nana and Tsuki are waiting for us."

"Yay!" The young'uns exclaimed as they ran home.

They all headed towards the gates, but something still wasn't right. Just exactly how did this all start in the first place?

"Hey, Remilia…" Rin started.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Just what happened…? Why did you… you know…"

She stopped in the middle of the road and started to think. She remembered talking to Shiroi and feeling better after that but then it was just blank between that and when she reached the roof. "I… I honestly don't remember… I was talking to Shiro-chan, but… I don't really know what got into me."

That was definitely peculiar. Rin and Hoseki were aware of how smart Remilia was and how far her memory can go so how can she forget something so crucial? This doesn't make any sense whatsoever.

_A figure watched the group leave from a distant with a warped smile. "Hehe… I guess that didn't work…" She snapped her fingers and the black clad assassins dissolved into mist. "Well now… What to do what to do?" She smirked quietly to herself. "Shall I toy with another emotion…?"_


	7. Family Times Chapter 7

**Chapter 8**

Hoseki walked home alone from the convenience store, a bag of chips and soda dangling in one hand and his iPod in the other. Music blared from his headphones as he walked by bystanders, wondering about if his princess is in needed of help with homework.

_I see you in the dusk, looking sad but beautiful._

He pulled his phone from his pocket. In bright digital letters were "Hime-sama" and a picture of her smiling with a can of pepsi. He gladly answered. "Hime-sa-"

"Hoseki! Hoseki! Hoseki!" A bubbly voice repeatedly called.

"Dammit, bubble nut! It's Sunday, relax would you?"

It suddenly got quiet on the phone.

"…"

"…"

"…You butt… I was going to see if you wanted to go to Rinny's place, but _someone_ had to YELL at me…" Remilia pouted. "Well since you're not in a good mood, I'll go to her place by myself."

Hoseki almost dropped everything just to retaliate against the athlete. "Now you listen here, you bubble nu-"

He heard a yawn. "Mop top's too loud. Hanging up now."

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Ah…_

"Damn it! I can't leave the princess with that bubble nut! She'll get weird like her!" With the natural instinct to be by Rin's side, he went running to her place. Little did he notice that he ran by the Yamamotos' family restaurant.

The door slid open with Remilia stepping out, Rin's phone in her hand. She donned the usual red ribbon in her hair, a blue and white striped tank top and shorts with white sneakers that were dusty from baseball practice. She grinned to herself, laughing as she watched the teen's back in the distance. "I win."

"Ahou-Rin, Lining wants pudding!" The young boy pleaded as he walked with the brunette and Rima.

Rin could only sigh tiredly as they made their way back from the grocery store. "Alright, just wait until we get home."

"Rima-tan gets two puddings though." Rima bluntly stated as she walked along the brick wall that lined the residences.

Never again will she take these two groceries shopping with her. So far they ate up all the free samples, knocked stuff off the shelves of approximately seven aisles, spilled fruit and milk all over the place. "Kids, you go home first, I'll be there in a bit." She said, hoping to get a few minutes of peace to herself.

"Then would we get pudding?" They asked.

"Yes… Now hurry and go home." She sighed.

Of course, with pudding on their minds, the two children ran home. Finally the brunette had peace and quiet for the first time in a few weeks. Come to think of it… It was two quiet… Normally something would get screwed up at this point and Reborn would coming, shoot her in the head with a bullet and of course the day would end with her in her underwear and some serious property damage. Would this be considered simply abnormal or a bad thing?

She listened to the beat of the song on her MP3 and casually walked home.

"I'm home!"

Of course, she just went ahead and left the groceries for her grandmother in the kitchen and walked up the stairs to her room ready to just plop into bed and sleep. She opened the door of course, lied in bed and rolled over only to have her head knock into something.

"Ow…! What the heck…?" She whined, wincing in pain.

"Ok whoa, let's get one thing straight here: Me."

The unfamiliar woman's voice made Rin's eyes snap open and soon chestnut was meeting with dark brown eyes and a mature face. Shaggy blond hair framed the sides of her face and was adorned with a light blue hair band. A thick green-banded tail was lying limp over her neck and a scaly head poked out from underneath the pillow.

"Ciao, kid!"

"HOLY CRAP!" Rin found herself hitting the ground hard, her legs tangled up with the covers.

"Miss me?" She asked with a grin.

Rin looked up, her head pounding from having slammed into the carpeting. "D-Dana?"

The 19 year old woman sat up, stretched her arms and yawned. "What took you so long?" She asked. "You can't keep guests waiting."

"I wouldn't have if you had just told me first!"

"I tried, but Remilia answered," She chuckled as she stood up.

"What?" Rin remembered going by Remilia's place earlier, but… Oh god that girl picked her pockets for her phone again.

Dana chuckled once more and sat down in the chair near Rin's desk. She looked around examining the room with a smile. "Eh… It's been a while hasn't it? It's so much cleaner than the last time I was here."

Rin nodded. "Y-Yeah… Your modeling work must keep you pretty busy, huh…"

"Nope." A voice answered.

The two looked at the door where Reborn stood, a towel around his neck and his hair glistening with water. "Ciaossu, Dana. How's Dino?"

She smiled. "Dad's doing great since he retired."

"Clumsy Uncle Dino retired from the fishing industry? Isn't that early?" Rin asked, completely clueless as to what was going on.

Reborn and Dana stared at the teen in blunt stun. Just what kind of lies have her father and mother been feeding her about the people in their lives. Clumsy Dino could no way be a part of the fishing industry other than owning it. The only lie that Dana and Reborn knew about was telling her that she was model which certainly explains why she's always on the move and why she had an iguana on her shoulder. Yup… Rin had inherited Kyoko's naivety.

"Little sis, you'll need to sit down for this…"

Hoseki took a seat in the park, tired from having to yell at Remilia over the phone about how wrong it was to steal Rin's. However, it was mostly because he had yet to have lunch and running around town on patrol for any potential threats to his princess was taking a toll on him. He unwrapped the packaged lunch and broke the chopsticks apart, ready to chow down on a lukewarm meal.

"Hoseki-san?" A gentle voice called out in question.

He turned his head. "Oh, Hotaru-san. What brings you here?"

The girl quickly turned nervous and her face was stained with an embarrassed pink. "W-Well, I just saw you and I-I started to wonder why you weren't with Rin-san since… you're always… with her…" She nervously answered with such a quiet shyness.

The teen smiled and told her to cop a seat. "I'm not always with her. Unlike my stupid mentor, I let my boss have some privacy." He smirked, his nose high in the air. He quickly took a bite of his lunch.

"Really? From what Remilia-san told me, I thought you'd always be by her side because… it seems like you like her…"

Hoseki began to violently choke on rice and guzzled down half his water. His face was red but it was hard to say whether it was from choking or the fact that Shiroi went and said he might have a crush on his own boss. "J-Just what are you saying? Don't let that bubble-nut influence your thinking!" He hissed, quickly wiping his mouth.

"I-I'm sorry…! But I'm glad though… I thought you'd might be angry…"

Hoseki sighed. "Angry about what? The bubble nut?"

Shiroi shook her head. "I… I thought you'd might be angry with Rin-san…"

"Why would I be angry with Hime-sama?" He questioned with a puzzled look in his blue-gray eyes.

The girl started to stutter again. "I-I-I just thought you'd still be upset…! I saw it… I saw her slap you across the face…"

He fell silent for a moment and put his lunch back in the plastic bag he was carrying it in. "I… I don't blame her. I was way out of line."

She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder and smiled. "I'm glad… You're not angry with her this entire time… But haven't you noticed something off…?" She asked.

"What's off?"

"The past few days… She seems to be avoiding you…"

Hoseki's heart jumped. He's thought it over before. The teen had always walked her home from school, but as of late, she's been denying him. Then there's the fact that Hoseki always lent her his jacket every time she falls out of dying will mode and she turns that down to. He even asked her to play a game of basketball with him and it was the first time she shot him down for that too. The way she was acting and how she always said… Was she really avoiding him?

"I… I honestly don't know…"

Shiroi smiled gently and place her hand on Hoseki's hand. "I think it's time I tell you what I've heard… It doesn't feel right if I don't tell you…"

"Eh? Dana, you're a mafia boss?"

Dana sighed and looked over at Reborn. "I told you it was too early."

The man took a sip of his espresso. "Nonsense. It's time she learns how to handle the truth."

Rin just blinked in awe and eventually started to pinch her own cheek. "I'm having some kind of nightmare, right?"

"No, you are not, sis." Dana answered curtly and half jokingly. Her eyes bored into Rin's and her expression suddenly turned cold, her lips forming a slight frown.

Her heart jumped with fear. Not once has she seen Dana become so serious and cold. A spearhead of fear struck her in the gut and she swallowed loudly, unable to say anything. She started to choke on her own words, pressing her lips together. Finally, Dana laughed.

"I guess she's still learning, huh?" She looked at Reborn who merely smirked, his arms folded across his chest.

"There's some progress at best." He answered. "She's a lot like you and your dad, Dana. Hardly any stamina to begin with."

"No chance of intimidating anyone."

"No power."

"No-"

"Okay, I get it. I suck." Rin sighed, ready to sulk in the corner.

"Agreed." Remilia sang as she waltzed into her room. "She's a lot like Uncle Tsuna too!"

Rin looked back. "Remmy!" She smiled for a moment. "My phone?"

The brunette pondered for a moment, sat down and reached into her purse. She lightly tossed the 3G into Rin's lap and grinned. "Thanks for letting me borrow it." She sang.

"More like letting you steal it." Rin replied under her breath with a faint smile.

The blond woman smiled at Remilia. "Ciao, little sis."

"Yo, got your call! Nice for you to come and visit. Where's Tracy?" She asked as she played with Iggy, making him stand on his hind legs while holding his forelegs.

"Tracy and them are back at the hotel relaxing." She answered. "Anyways, where's my little brother and other little sister?"

"Tsuki's with Grandma getting a check up."

"And Hoseki…" Remilia looked around. "That's odd… I thought he'd be here by now."

All eyes fell on the athlete.

"I called him earlier and he even took off running past my place. You'd think he be here by now."

It was certainly odd. Hoseki had always made it a point to be punctual especially if it was Rin. This wasn't good. What if he got mugged only this time he can't fight them all off like he usually does? What if there was an accident? Rin started to feel remorse and regret. Bitter emotions began to swirl violently in her heart. There was so much she had already regretted already… She couldn't live with herself like this…

"I say we go look for while it's still light out." Dana stood up, scooping the reptile into her hands and letting him crawl over her shoulder. As soon as she was sure that Iggy was secured, she ran towards the stairs.

"W-Wait a second, Dana-"

The sound of a heavy crash and blow, the two girls ran out to check what happened. Yup… Dana fell down the stairs again.

"D-Dana, are you alright?" Rin asked.

Remilia slid on the wood flooring in her socks and knocked into Rin, sending her tumbling down the stairs. "Whoops."

The two girls lied down at the base like dead bodies, somewhat moving and somewhat numb.

"Don't you guys have a bomber to find?" Reborn asked as he calmly walked down the stairs, stepping over their bodies.

"We're on it…" They groaned.

Iggy stood on the both of them, flicking his tongue and tilting his head. Oh, this is just chaos and nothing has yet to happen.


	8. Family Times Chapter 8

**Chapter 9 **

A woman with light tan hair and gentle peach skin stood outside the household, her hair up in a bun with her glasses shining in the faint light of the sun. She sighed tiredly at the sound of screaming and crashing. She never knew why she always sighed at that sound. It should be expected, but then again the mess that she causes is different every time. "I should never leave my stupid boss alone…"

"Ciaossu, Tracy." Reborn greeted casually as he walked out the door, slipping his jacket on.

The woman smiled and sighed quietly. "Hello, Reborn. It's been a while."

The man chuckled to himself. "You're here for your boss?"

She smirked and shrugged. "My 'Dana fell down the stairs' sense was tingling." She joked casually, shrugging. The woman looked up and sighed. "I'll pay for whatever damages her accident caused."

_I see you in the dusk. You look sad but beautiful. The moment you raised your eyes, you were truly smiling. Stay in my heart. I hide my tired feelings in the depths of my heart._

His phone continued to ring and ring and he continued to deny its existence. He stood alone in the middle of the park, his phone in his tightly clenched hand. Just about anything would set him off. The song stopped and the light in his cell dimmed. He was about to shove it in his pocket until it rung again. He stared at the name on the screen.

"… What princess..?" He muttered bitterly. He silenced the song in annoyance and walked away, leaving the park.

_She avoided you._

I know.

_She even told me._

…

_More importantly… She even forgotten the past…_

She did, didn't she…?

_It's alright to be mad, Hoseki-san._

I'm not mad… I'm furious.

_I see. Maybe it's time then…_

For what?

_For you to abandon that girl… Just like how she abandoned her past._

… Maybe it is…

The girls had split up, running around town to find Hoseki. They asked classmates, seniors, citizens and even suspicious strangers. Things were starting to get desperate for them. Hoseki was a punctual, brilliant guy who made it a point to always make sure he was up and kicking so he can fight. He would even answer his phone in a fight to make sure no one worried. If he was horribly injured to the point where he couldn't walk, he'd still make himself crawl so he can take down anyone in his way. It made no sense. Did he finally…?

"Ah, it's stupid Rin."

Rin looked down and saw Rima standing next to her alone. "R-Rima, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be at home with Lining."

The little girl shrugged. "Rima-tan got bored and decided to follow you guys." She tugged at Rin's jeans. "So who are you looking for?" She asked with curious green eyes.

"A-Ah… Hoseki-kun… He hasn't been answering his phone…"

"Ahou-seki?" Rima asked. "Rima-tan will help find him too."

"R-Rima, it's alright. You don't have to-"

"If Rima-tan finds him, Rima-tan gets your pudding." She turned and ran off to find the bomber.

Rin rubbed her temples and sighed heavily. "It's always about snacks with that kid… Dammit…" She shook her head and tried to turn her focus back to the current problem. She tried to think of all the places Hoseki would love to go to. Come to think of it… Hoseki never really went to any of the places he wanted to go to. He never even said anything about it. It was always what Rin or Remilia wanted to do. Maybe… Maybe he's upset with that…? Even after everything she did to make sure he wasn't…

"Ah, Rin-san?"

The brunette looked up, her eyes brimming with tears. "V-Viola…?"

"Rin-san, are you crying?" She asked, dropping her grocery bags as she ran up to her. "W-Who made you cry?"

"V-Viola-san… No one made me cry…" She wiped her tears quickly and pulled herself together. "Anyways, what brings you out here?"

Viola pointed to the grocery bags at her feet. "It's my turn to go shopping…" She looked around, scanning the area with her emerald eyes. "That's odd, I don't see Hoseki-san…"

The brunette sighed and took a seat on the bench. "T-That's the thing… We're trying to find him right now…"

"Even stranger. I just passed him on my way here."

Brown eyes lit up and she grabbed Viola by the shoulders. "Where? Where did you see him?"

"Down by the plaza… Rin, is everything okay? "

"Thanks so much, Viola-chan!" The brunette dashed off to the shopping plaza. It didn't even cross her mind as to what she would say to Hoseki. All she could think about was how to make things right again. To lose a great friend like him… She didn't even want to think about it. Her feet slowly came to a stop and she began to think. Ever since Reborn shown up, she's been feeling nothing but a mix of different nostalgia. There was warm and happy nostalgia while she trained with Remilia and Hoseki. Then there was the sad and cold nostalgia. The feeling that she was supposed to know something constantly haunted her and it constantly haunted her around Hoseki. She's even seen it on Hoseki's face, the pain he was feeling around her. Now she's gone and caused more pain… It needs to change!

Remilia, Dana and Tracy met up at the near-empty plaza where Rin told them to go. Rin's request was that they go on and find him and make sure he's alright.

"Yo, son. Give Mama a hug." Dana greeted with a smile once she set her eyes on Hoseki.

The teen only looked at her, his blue-gray eyes' gaze even colder than usual. "Get away from me."

Dana crossed her arms and frowned. For Hoseki to speak in such a cold voice means that something was wrong. The light of hope that once resided in his eyes were gone and it was nothing but a dead gaze. "Gray, what's going on with you? Why are you acting like this? This isn't how you were raised."

"I was raised to fight for myself and survive. That's all."

"You were also raised to be a good person, Gray. 'Don't be like me and spend your life in sorrow'. Isn't that what-"

"I respect her as a boss, but she has no place to tell me how to live. She's not my mother and he's not my father. As far as I'm aware, they've only provided me a place to live."

The blond sighed and shook her head. "You don't understand, Gray… They do care and Remmy and Rin too!"

He snapped at the mention of her name. "Like I give a fuck!" He yelled. "If she cared, then she would've remembered! I've done everything for I can for her and to keep her and the people she loves safe! I stopped caring for myself a long time ago! It seems like she doesn't care what I do at this point. She's running from me… If that is it then so what? If she doesn't need me, then I don't need her! I fucking refuse to be where I'm not needed!"

"That's not true!" Remilia shouted. "She does care! Hoseki, she-"

"That's a fucking lie! Shit, you bubble nut! She's forgotten you too! Just because she remembers you now… It doesn't mean she remembers everything! I know her just as well as you do! If she wanted to remember, she would've by now!"

The brunette stood there quietly and she frowned. For a moment, she was serious and her expression resembled her father's. "You don't get it… There are reasons for why she doesn't remember… Please, Hoseki..."

His gaze remained unchanged and he reached into his pocket and pulled out a grenade. "I'm tired of this, bubble-nut. We've been arguing for eleven years so why do we have stick around each other? I'm tired of having to serve a princess that runs from me."

"There's no choice then… Tracy, the batteries."

The light-haired brunette sighed and handed her the heavy duty batteries. "I hope you know what you're doing…"

"Don't I always?"

"Nope."

The iguana on Dana's shoulders wrapped his tongue around the batteries and swallowed with a loud wet gulp. He slid off her shoulder and started to grow beyond the size of a great dane. His black eyes glistened in the dusk as Dana cracked her barbed whip. "Iggy and I will have to bring you back to your senses."

"Just try it."

"Rima will help too." The child stood behind Hoseki, her twin raikas at the ready. "Rima promised to find Ahou-seki and to bring him back."

It was a showdown between the three. The piercing focused green eyes of Rima, the determined look in Dana's brown eyes and Hoseki's cold blue-gray eyes all stared down at each other, ready to start a war. The fight started with Iggy running at 70 miles per hour at Hoseki, stopping right in front of him and whipping his tail. The teen front-rolled out of the reptile's way and threw a grenade at Iggy only to have it be swallowed, never to explode. The child started striking at Hoseki's ankles only to have him move nimbly out of the way and kick the raikas out of her hands.

"Beat it, runt."

"Gray, don't you dare hurt her!" Dana yelled, binding his hands with her whip. Blood began to seep into the braided leather and drip to the concrete. "Please, just calm down already!"

"Quiet, I don't want to hear anything else."

Rin ran into the scene and was her heart nearly stopped. She rushed over to the crying Rima and carried her to safety with Remilia. "Don't cry, Rima. Please?"

She still continued to cry though. "Rima promised but failed!" She sobbed nearly incoherently. "Stupid Rin's gonna be mad at me!"

"E-Easy there, Rima. I'm not mad. You don't have to cry about this, alright?"

Remilia took the child from her arms. "C'mon, you don't have to cry. Smile, please?"

"Ah, so much like her stupid cow cousin when he was young." The hitman briskly walked in, his hand in his pocket and the other on his fedora.

"R-Reborn! Do something! Hoseki and Dana…!"

He looked at her with an unreadable expression. "I can't."

"But why? Reborn, you're our tutor, aren't you? Please!"

He placed a firm hand on her head. "He's your subordinate. You're the one who can stop him."

Rin was sick of it. She was sick of Reborn's riddles and she was sick of knowing that she was the next person to inherit the Vongola. The Vongola was the reason why this happened. Hell, Mafia itself was the reason why it all happened. She just wanted a normal life. She just wanted a peaceful life with her grandmother and little sister. A bitter mix of anger and sadness welled up in her eyes. She stomped her foot, her muscles and fists tightening as she yelled out. "He's not my subordinate, dammit! Quit saying that he is, Reborn!" She looked up at him, her eyes full of anger and brimming with desperation. "I never asked for this! I never asked to be a mafia kid! I just wanted to live a happy life with everyone! Hoseki-kun's not my subordinate! He never was nor will he ever be my subordinate, do you hear me?"

As she yelled, a sky flame began to reheat and burn brightly over her heart and all too quickly it faded. Reborn took note of this and smiled, looking up to Dana and Hoseki.

"Dammit, Hoseki… This is your last chance…!"

Hoseki kicked his heel to the floor, a grenade with the pin recently pulled rolling out from his jeans. "Yeah, it is…"

His protective instincts kicking in, Iggy whipped his tail once more, sending the grenade flying to the a billboard above. Hoewever, it was too late. The explosive went off and the debris start to fly towards everyone below. Remilia ran off with Rima in her arms and Iggy dashed under Dana, carrying her away.

"Hoseki-kun!"

In a flash, she broke into dying will mode, the scent of gunpowder spreading to everyone's senses. It all happened so fast, but everyone came to know even faster.

"Rin-san, Remilia-san!" Viola quickly dropped everything in the kitchen and ran off to the scene.

"… More trouble…?" Kyoi yawned as he looked out his window, watching the billboard slowly fall and bend.

"What kind of town is this?" Son shouted as he ran out of the plaza, dragging his sister and his mother with him.

"What in the world is this?" Naoto shouted as he looked out the bathroom window.

"Freakin', Naoto, put on a shirt!" His little sister shouted from the front yard.

Dust cleared away and the sound of debris died out slowly. In the dark, Hoseki felt warmth around him. His eyes remained closed and everything he heard was muffled.

_Is this… it? Did I die…?_

Suddenly, lukewarm drops of water dripped to his face and touched his lips. The taste wasn't water. They were tears .Someone was crying, but who…? His eyes blinked open and his vision adjusted itself to the dark. His eyes met Rin's sorrowful brown orbs. She whimpered as she saw him wake up and winced in pain. Despite having shielded him from the debris in dying will mode, she still felt the dull pain of it all.

"Y-You…"

"Hoseki-kun… I know… I heard you…"

He looked away. "So you did…"

"But you're wrong…!" Pause. "I always cared… I… I admit I avoided you, but the reason's wrong…!"

Hoseki didn't want to look at her. His eyes shifted around to see that they were buried with very little room to move around.

"I avoided you because I was scared…!"

"Scared…?"

"That's right, I was scared…! I was scared you were in pain because of me… You always did what we wanted to do and you always did things for my sake and I never did anything to return the favor…! Then there was the fact that I slapped you last time…! I thought you were in pain because of me… I thought you hated me but you couldn't leave me alone or say anything about it because you're a part of the Vongola family… So I avoided you… I didn't care if you hated me… I just wanted to you smile genuinely again…"

"I…"

"So don't ever say I stopped caring! If I did stop caring…! I… I just can't stop caring, idiot!"

In the pit of his stomach, he felt a sinking ball of guilt. How did it come to this? It wasn't Rin who had forgotten… It was him… How could he forget how much she cared? How could he…? He swore to himself that he'll always protect her and that he'll always make sure her eyes were never in pain again. This entire time she's always remembered how to care… Wasn't that enough?

He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and smiled, wiping her tears. "I know… I'm an idiot… I made the princess cry again…" She opened her puffy eyes. "Hime-sama, tears don't suit you… Don't cry anymore… I'm here…"

Rin felt that warm nostalgia stir again.

_Don't cry, I'll always be here!_

Someone said those words, but who…?

The teen sat up, leaning back against the rubble and pulled her into his chest. The scent of gunpowder emitted from his shirt and she closed her eyes. "Forgive me, Hime… I was… an even bigger idiot than I should've been."

"It's not your fault… I was the stupid one…"

"But I swallowed Hotaru-san's words before I even heard the whole story… What idiocy, right?"

Rin looked up at him. "Eh? Shiroi-chan?"

Light broke through the rubble, blinding the two. Soon they heard the familiar voices of their friends.

"Found them!" Remilia exclaimed. She got a better look and blushed a little. "Oh… Well this is awkward…"

"You troublemakers…!" Kyoi hissed only to be pushed away by Dana.

"Gray Hoseki, what are you doing with my little sister?"

"Not now, Murasaki-senpai…" She looked at the teens in the debris. "You know… If you want us to, we can close it back up and get you guys in the morning."

Rin and Hoseki blushed and looked away from each other.

"Hime-sama." He held his hand. "It's best we get home right now."

Rin looked at his face and that light was back in his eyes. He was finally smiling genuinely and now things were back to normal and maybe even better. She took his hand and felt their warmth, returning a gentle smile to him. "Glad to have you back."

_That's right… Welcome back, Gray Hoseki… Hehe, I think I understand now. Now… I can properly tear them apart like the dolls they are…_


	9. Family Times Chapter 9

**Chapter 10**

A brisk morning in Namimori today and it certainly called for a morning jog. Gavin Yamamoto, the eldest sibling of Remilia Yamamoto who was just discharged from the hospital a few days ago. He looked into his sisters' room to see that Remilia had already left for morning practice and that Connie was still asleep in bed. He pulled his hood over his sandy tan hair, hiding his dark brown eyes and quietly made his way downstairs.

"_Remember, no roadwork for two weeks!" Remilia shouted. _

"_What? Why?" _

"_You're still recovering! The main reason why the hospital even discharged you is because you were too noisy!" She retorted. _

_Gavin became frustrated and threw his hair in a mess. "This extremely sucks!" _

"_Shut up, I'm doing homework!" Connie shouted from upstairs. _

He's aware of how his sisters worry, but it's all fine now. Being in the hospital meant he was sitting around doing nothing anyways and it was completely not like him to not be training. He felt just fine and was ready to go back to training. He slipped out into the misty morning air outside and started his jog, making sure to take the route away from school. The teen punched his fists in rhythm to his breathing, feeling revved up and motivated.

"Hey, you." A voice called from behind him.

The sound of sneakers hitting the pavement stopped and he turned around.

"Is your name Yamamoto Gavin by any chance?"

"Yes… Who are… Wait…" He stared at the girl for a moment and smiled. "Are you interested in the boxing club?"

The young teen tilted her head for a moment and raised a brow. Gavin couldn't see her actual expression in the fog, but he could see that her hair was a light yellow with red tips. The miss was petite and slender.

"Boxing…? I'm more into judo." A small smirk showed in her lips. "But, I'll tell you what. If you beat me, I'll join." She seemed to be tying something around her wrist and her fingers seemed have become pointed and thin like blades on a knife.

"Alright then, sounds good to me."

The two clashed, but Gavin didn't expect such a horrible foreboding. Around the corner, lied a male teen with dark silver hair tied back in a thin ponytail, bleeding from the mouth and crawling to reach for help. He looked up at the two clashing with each other, his vision blurry and his head pounding with pain. His bloodied lips opened to speak, but he was rendered useless and weak. "… Don't…. She's not…" He collapsed right there, his fingers going limp and uncurling, revealing what he held in the palm of his hand: a dying clover.

During class, the board said 'Study' and of course the students pretty much walked around and spoke with each other for the time being. Rin, Remilia, Hoseki, Viola and Mori spoke with each other as usual. However, someone was missing and it started to stir worry with them. Actually… More people were missing… The classroom was half-empty…

"Where is everyone…?" Rin asked, scanning around the room.

"It's weird… Even Shiro-chan's missing…" Remilia pointed out, her brows furrowed into worry.

Mori shrugged and scratched the back of his black hair and sighed. "M-Maybe they're just sick…"

"But more than half the class is missing…" Hoseki pointed out.

Suddenly the door slid opened and there stood a disciplinary committee member. "Takahashi Viola." He called out.

Viola didn't respond. Her eyes focused on the ground as if she was somewhere else instead of there. She had been quiet the entire morning compared to her usual self.

"Viola-san…" Rin tapped her shoulder and ended up snapping her out of her daze.

"Y-Yes, what's wrong?" Viola asked.

Rin could see it in her emerald eyes that something was wrong. "A-Ah, the committee…"

Viola looked up and frowned. Solemnly she walked out the door and followed the member to the reception room, closing the door behind her.

"That's strange…" Mori muttered.

"How so?"

"Usually… Her brother's the one picking people up from classrooms… Is he sick?"

"It can't be… Pony-boy usually-"

Suddenly the door slid open once more only with a loud slam. "Guys this is bad! Takahashi Hayate and Yamamoto Gavin are in the hospital! I saw the paramedics carry them into the ambulance on the way here!"

Remilia stopped listening to what he had to say as soon as she heard her brother's name in that sentence. Her hands started to shake and her skin ran cold. To know her brother was in the hospital once more… He must've gone jogging and then… Just happened? She had to know. She had to check. Before she knew it, she dashed out of the classroom, her mind focused on heading on to the hospital.

"Remilia!" Rin quickly followed her out the door. To be honest, she was panicked as well. Gavin was her 'big brother' in a way and to hear that he was in the hospital after being released was a nightmare they didn't want to see.

"Wait, Hi-"

Mori pushed Hoseki back into his seat. "Don't. The class's empty enough, and someone needs to cover for them."

"What about you then?"

"Two people are better than one."

The teen sat back down and sighed. He had no choice since it was clear that Mori wasn't going to let him leave especially since he was class president. Even so, the best he could do to make himself useful was to bring Rin the homework later. Remilia? Bubble-nut's on her own.

"Nii-san!"

"Remilia…" Her father looked up at her and back to his son, his face solemn.

Her heart didn't sink; it fell and shattered from a high shelf once she had seen the condition her brother was in. He lied there in bed with his arms injected with IV fluids and an oxygen mask over his face. Half his face was bandaged and his torso was wrapped tightly with gauze. His bare shoulder revealed a long line of stitching that pulled his wound closed. "No…" She fell to her knees with tears brimming in her eyes. "Why…? Why did it have to happen again…? Right when we got him back…!"

"Remilia! Remilia, are you-" The brunette was rendered speechless upon seeing her best friend, who always stood strong and happy, on the floor, crying and heartbroken. Her chestnut eyes looked up and fixed themselves on Gavin who lied in bed with his eyes closed. She noticed Yamamoto sitting next to him with a heavy frown and looked back at Gavin. "N-No way… Aniki… He's not…"

"Don't worry, he's just sleeping." Reborn assured. "He left this morning to jog and someone found him all beat up…" He reached into his pocket and pulled something out. "Along with this." In the palm of his hand was a charm constructed of two sparrow feathers, stained with red-brown. "This was found in his hand when they brought him in." He dug into his pockets once more and pulled out something green and partially wilted. "And this dying clover… Hayate was holding it."

The girls' eyes widened and words wouldn't come out to let them express the shock. This was why Viola was so worried. Come to think of it, she came to school alone… She was usually seen with Hayate by her side because class starts.

"Reborn, where's Hayate and Viola?" She asked.

"…"

"Please… Just tell us…"

"And what would you do then?" He asked, his low voice colder than usual. "The damage is done and going to see them won't do much, but cause pain towards yourself. Rin, in the months I've been tutoring you, you have made progress, but you have not shown me any evidence that you have become strong enough."

Those words were like knives into her heart. All of that training and she's seen a change in her abilities. She had gained new abilities and more confidence in her level of fighting, but hear that she wasn't strong enough… What did he mean? Her fists tightened and she gnawed at her lower lip, her eyes fixed on the floor. "But still…"

"'There must be something I can do' Is that what you're thinking?" He asked, hitting the nail in the head.

"Reborn, you're not seriously…" Yamamoto looked at the girls and frowned. It was expected that they'd be dragged into their world of fighting and bloodshed, but just what could he have done to prevent it a little longer?

He took Rin out of the room and closed the door, leaving the Yamamoto family to take care of Gavin. The man pulled out an envelope, the border shining faintly with gold and the wax seal marked with the Roman numeral for ten. Rin took the envelope into her hands and broke the wax seal, unfolding the letter inside. "H-Hot!" She yelped as a dying will flame blazed on the top of the paper. "To Rin, the XI Candidate: I have heard of your progress through letters from Reborn and I admit that there are some things that I agree with. However, I find that you are strong enough to take on your first mission despite what he says. Rin, your assignment is to eliminate the remainders of the Velenospina Famiglia, survivors of a powerful family that was recently erased for their betrayal of the alliance. I know your capabilities and I know you can accomplish this. – Vongola Decimo."

"E-Eliminate them? But-"

"That's precisely what I'm talking about. You hesitate in situations like this." His lowered his hat and frowned. "You can't afford to hesitate during a fight."

"But I've told you so many times before! I don't want to hurt anyone!"

"What if someone hurts the people you care about?" He asked right after her declaration. Her eyes shot up at him, shocked. "This wasn't an ordinary fight. More students from Namimori Middle are arriving in this hospital as we speak and it's all because of the people who attacked Gavin and Hayate." He paused. "Even your prefect's missing as of late and you're still hesitating as to whether or not-"

"I'll do it." She uttered in a low voice. "Why didn't you just say that in the first place? If you had told me that it was the mafia that did this… I would've done something about this either way…" She looked into the window and at Remilia and her father. The sad faces they donned made her heart sink. "They just got him back and now he's back in here again… I just got Remilia to smile again and now look… I hate this…" She looked at Reborn, her eyes determined and set ablaze with courage. "Reborn, please tell Vongola Decimo that I'm taking the mission not for him, but for my friends."

"So you're not going to go away yet…?" A quiet voice asked. Eyes peered down at the man lying on the floor, drenched in blood and adorned with bruises and injuries. He looked up at the figure sitting before him with her legs crossed. "That's fine…" She giggled. "Let's play some more if you can…"

The prefect picked himself up and drew more cards. His head felt light and his vision blurred as he stood pigeon-toed before his opponent. "Hotaru Shiroi… I'll punish you for harming our students."

"Shiroi? That's wrong." She snapped her fingers and the only things that were bright in that dark room were visions of a brunette with long brown hair and a brilliant smile. "Do you know why?"

Kyoi couldn't do anything against this person he saw. Her smile was his weakness. Her sadness was his weakness. The existence of this girl was his weakness in general.

The brunette turned towards him and smiled and soon that sweet smile was warped as a blow was dealt to his stomach. Blood dripped from his lips as he fell to his knees and collapsed. His eyes shot up to the villain in question as he gasped for air and for the pain to leave his body.

"Did you figure it out yet?" The woman donned a sadistic smirk as she walked over to Kyoi's body. She slammed her heel into his ribs and grinned with her arms crossed. "It's because I'll turn everything black…"


	10. Family Times Chapter 10

_"I'll do it." She uttered in a low voice. "Why didn't you just say that in the first place? If you had told me that it was the mafia that did this… I would've done something about this either way…"_

Rin sulked in her room that night, resting her forehead on her knees and sighing heavily. "I sounded so arrogant back there." She muttered. Her heart poured out again when she said those words to Reborn. Of course talking back to him often meant more training later, but even so why did she say it like that? She hated mafia to the core. She didn't want to hurt anyone and she didn't want anyone to get hurt either. What the hell was she supposed to do though? She had no choice, but to do something about it. It wasn't right that someone had to get hurt and it was horrible that it was someone who was like family to her. She muttered the name she had for Gavin and prayed that he would recover soon.

She looked at her phone that was charging on her desk and reached for it. Calling Remilia was out of the question considering her current emotional state. Maybe Hoseki? Her thumbs quickly tapped the screen and dialed his number.

"Leave the message at the beep."

It perplexed her how Hoseki didn't pick up his phone this time. Maybe he was in the shower or something. Still, looking at how late it was, there's no way he could be taking a shower right now. He'll reply later, right? Even so, it was worrying. She didn't see Hoseki for most of the day and normally he'd called to make up for it. The brunette could only scratch her head at this. Finally she came to the conclusion that she was thinking too much and decided to sleep it off. With any hope it's all just a dream.

However, the dream was a living nightmare and the brunette had discovered that the next morning. She had managed to wake up early for once and slowly made her way down the stairs. She looked in the kitchen to see her grandmother and Tsuki cooking up breakfast, accompanied by the little blond child who donned his bunny hat in a messy fashion.

"Ok, Lining, what did we say about getting dressed in the morning? Always look in the mirror." Rin yawned as she fixed his hat on straight.

The child pulled his hat down shyly and covered his face. "L-Lining doesn't need a mirror! Go away!"

"You'll have to pardon Lining, he's been like this all morning." Tsuki sighed as she set the silverware on the table.

"Is that right?" She asked lazily as she took her seat. She took a small bite of toast and looked at Lining.

Normally he was noisy in the morning like Rima was. He'd be yelling at Rima to stop picking off his plate and would even throw his hat around, accidentally sending firearms flying throughout the room. Now he was completely silent minus his last statement. He seemed completely different from a child in general. His face was solemn and he wouldn't look up at anyone. Rin opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong when suddenly the house phone called for someone to answer it.

"Oh, Rin, can you get that?" Her grandmother asked her polite as she looked up from frying the eggs.

"Sure thing." She pushed the chair back as she stood up to answer the phone in the hall. "Hello, Amano residence." She greeted formally, stifling a yawn. Shouts and screams blared into her ear and nearly made her drop the phone. She tried to listen to what they were saying, but it was complete incoherent. "Guys, calm down! I can't hear you when you're all shouting like this!"

The other end of the line turned quiet for a few seconds and finally someone stepped up to speak. "Rinny, I know how you said it'd be great if school just didn't exist, but…" Remilia's voice began to trail away. "Our school's gone, it's a freakin' empty lot!"

Rin almost dropped the phone again. She was left dumbfounded. Surely, she's dreaming again. Or that thing where you wish at 11:11 really works. It's all the late-night homework sessions from Reborn. Yeah, that's it. It's those late-night study sessions. "I'm sorry, Remmy, but did you say 'gone'?"

Silence. "I knew you didn't have such great hearing, but really? Yes, it's gone! There's a just a fat empty lot where the school used to be! There's even a freakin' hole in the ground as proof!"

"There's more, Rin."

"Viola?"

"Rin-san, the school's not the only thing missing. Takasu-san, Hoseki, Shiroi and everyone from class including Murasaki-senpai are all missing. The only ones that showed up to school were me and Remilia-san." Viola's voice was serious for once. It wasn't that polite tone of voice nor was it that semi-sarcastic tone. It was dead serious. Her voice was cold enough to send chills down Rin's spine.

Rin felt her heart stop. Everyone was gone overnight. Her skin quickly turned pale at the thought. Then it hit her. It hit her hard in the chest like a wrecking ball. Hoseki was missing. It was pieced together in her head. The guy had been missing since the previous night. She froze in the middle of the hallway, unable to move. She stood there trembling. She wanted to say something, anything really to prove that it was all just a surreal dream. Sadly it was reality.

She felt the plastic surface of the phone slide out of her hand and turned around.

"Leave it to Rin. She said that she'd take care of it." Reborn assured them with a sly smile. With that simple sentence, he hung up the phone and threw Rin's clothes in her face. "Go and get ready, we're going to the park."

Her chocolate eyes showed how dumbfounded she was. She watched his broad back walk up the stairs with his hand in his pocket, stunned and awed. Then she realized that she let Reborn speak for her again. "Hey, Reborn!" She hissed as she ran up the stairs after him.

Once she had changed into a pair of dark blue jeans and a black T-shirt that concealed the dark red thermal she donned underneath, she followed Reborn to the park per his orders. There, her eyes grew fixated on a familiar silhouette sitting on a park bench. Long golden hair was tied back into a flowing ponytail by a sky blue ribbon, an open book on her lap and glasses sitting on her face.

Rin smiled and her heart filled with excitement. "Dana!"

The woman looked up and smiled. "Yo, kid! How's my little sister doing?" She casually greeted as she took off her glasses. She looked at up at the man who walked up from behind Rin and suddenly her expression became stoic. "So it did happen."

Reborn nodded. "I'm afraid so. The Velenospino are making a comeback and they chose to do so here."

Rin looked at up at the two, confused and worried. Hearing a foreign name like 'Velenospino' and the word 'comeback' just called for nothing, but trouble. She was scared to ask and began to gnaw at her lower lip. However, despite her effort in avoid questions, she parroted the name.

Dana could only look at her and feign a smile, trying her best to assure the teen. "It's a long story, kid. All we can say now is that they're dangerous."

A smirk crawled across Reborn's face, complimenting his sly shadowed eyes. "That's why she said she'll take care of it."

The blonde's lips could only gape as she looked at the hitman. Her brown orbs shifted back and forth between the brunette in front of her and the man on her right. She furiously shook her head, whipping her ponytail wildly. "Oh no! Absolutely not! She's not ready for this, Reborn! I'll accept the Spartan studying and the madness of your training, but not this! S-She's not just ready for this, Reborn! A-And more importantly, you're putting words in her mouth like you did to me when I was student, ri-"

"Dana, that's really not the case. He's telling the truth." Rin interrupted her. She looked away and stared at the ground where the sparrows were pecking and scavenging for a little snack. "I really did say that the other day. The circumstances… T-They were grim and I couldn't sit by while more people got hurt, you know?" She began to sulk again. "And now the school's missing. It's just one big empty parking lot from what they told me." The brunette could only lean back and sigh, her voice laced with what sounded like remorse.

The woman looked at Reborn with determined eyes. "Reborn, let me take her place. If I do then there's a smaller chance of someone losing their li-"

"Dana, this is something that Rin was asked to do and this is something that Rin agreed to. She can't go back on her words at this point." Reborn reminded her almost harshly. "This is the affairs of the Vongola, not the Cavallone."

"It may not me the affairs of the Cavallone, but this does involve me, Reborn! I'm putting my foot do-"

Reborn stared down at her, his eyes hard and cold almost like a knife. He frowned, but he remained absolutely silent. The tension in the air grew to become suffocating as Dana tried to hold her ground against her former teacher. In the end she grimaced and looked away. "I can't easily agree to this, but since this is law…" Her voice began to recede, understanding the reason why. Then she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Dana, I promise." Pause. "I-I promise nothing will happen to me! I'll come back and succeed! I'm not that reckless little kid anymore! Please, just trust me!" She back down and began to shuffle her feet. "I know what I agreed to might be something that could get me killed, but…" She dug her heels into the ground. "This is my fight! My reason for agreeing is not the Vongola! It was never about the Vongola to begin with!"

The birds scattered at the sound of her voice, echoing throughout the park. A wind blew in between and past the three, bringing up dirt and dust across the legs of their pants. Suddenly Rin felt a blow to the gut. There was that arrogance again, mocking and daunting her. Maybe she was still that reckless in a verbal fashion.

"Vongola this and Vongola that… I really don't get why this game is so important to you." A familiar voice startled them.

"You-"

"Let's get one thing straight. I like what Rinny said just now." The owner of the voice smiled and slugged her bat over her shoulder. "Normally I wouldn't step into a game of war, but there's a potential threat to my friends…" She swept her bags away from her face and flashed a brilliant white grin. "There's no way I'm letting you have all the fun in handing those butts their butts!"

"Remmy, that's really…" Remilia's cliché speech certainly threw her off. She expected that with everything that had happened that Remilia would be in a bitter state. She also expected Remilia to say something less cheesy or at least something more of her character like "Rinny, you butt. I'm not letting you do this alone." It was obvious what Remilia was thinking of doing and it was obvious that it was enough to render Rin speechless.

"I guess, I have no choice." Dana sighed dejectedly, pulling her jacket off her waist and sliding her arm through the white sleeves. "I'm going too."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"I said I'm going." Dana snorted as she slid her jacket over her bare shoulders. "As if I'll let my baby sisters fight alone. As your older sister, I have the job and responsibility of protecting you too." She smiled gently and roughly ruffled their brown hair. "That and I couldn't live with myself I let something happen to you two."

"We can handle ourselves, Dana, unlike you!" Remilia and Rin snapped simultaneously.

"Alright, alright, just calm down." She sheepishly chuckled. "I'm not that clumsy."

Reborn smiled at the scene and looked at Leon who perched on his shoulder. The little reptile crawled behind his neck to reach his other shoulder. As he turned around, his tail dropped into Reborn's hand, twitching during its final moments and falling limp and cold within seconds. He frowned at this and looked at the three. He wasn't sure as to what would happen, but he knew that he helped raise Rin right. The sly smile came back and his eyes fell back on to his partner who began to lose shape. "A second generation loser student, but since she's his daughter, I expect to see a legacy."


	11. Family Times Chapter 11

The gates were closed under the arrest of chains and locks. The metal bars were wrapped with bright yellow caution tape, warning them to keep out. Clearly, that was out of the question as they stood in front of the empty lot that used to be their school. Rin and Remilia gazed at the tall obstacle, wondering how they were going to get in. Well, at least Rin was wondering. She was never good at climbing in general let alone infiltrating.

"I'm going first." Remilia declared bluntly, catching Rin off-guard.

"R-Remmy, just a sec! Shouldn't we think this through?"

Remilia didn't pay any mind to her best friend and instead, set the sole of her sneakers on the steel, bracing herself for the climb. She pulled herself up to the top of the narrow metal ledge and jumped to the other side, her hands on the gates helping her slide to the ground. She clapped her hands together, cleaning up her burning palms. "Alright, your turn. You've done this before." She sighed tiredly.

"Only because we had no choice!" Rin yelped. She looked at the height of the gate and noticed there were no footholds or any form of support to help her climb. What to do? The only fence she climbed was the chain link one by the baseball field and she _fell _off that one. Being the daughter of a loser didn't help in the least. This is one of the few times one can curse biological matters.

"You'll live." Remilia assured. "Now hurry up and get your butt over here." She groaned, her knuckles touching her hip. Remilia was always annoyed by Rin's lack of confidence. Her arms were crossed as she waited for the brunette to swallow her pride and take the leap.

Reborn sighed at the sight of his pathetic student as she nervously grabbed the steel bars. Great, we're doing this the hard way. "Rin," He called sternly.

She flinched at the icy sound of her name. "Y-yes?"

The man walked over to her, kneeling down and locking his fingers together. "I'll give you a boost."

Rin looked down at him, her brow raised at her tutor's act of kindness. This was something new, but maybe Reborn understood. After all, no one's born the world best hitman. It takes time, right? She accepted his help, setting her boot on his hands. Reborn didn't move an inch. He sat there like a rock as she pushed herself up. Then under his fedora's shadow, he smirked. He gave a devilish smirk. "Brace yourself." He warned.

"What?"

He quickly stood up, making the girl standing on his hands lose her balance and just like that he threw her over the metal gates. He watched as her body flew over the ledge with a small chuckle. Even he had to admit that it was an amusing sight. He turned to Dana, letting the sound of her body hitting the dirt with a thud reach him. "You're next."

Dana swallowed the lump in her throat. The stories of the abuse that her father took when Reborn was a baby brewed in the back of her head and stirred the fear that Reborn had instilled in her when she was his student. The fact that she just witnessed it firsthand didn't help her much as well. That was the depressing part of it. She had to remember the detailed tales her father had told her and those details made it clear that it was even worse than that of Hell.

"N-No thanks, Reborn." She uttered a nervous laugh. "I-I can do it on my own."

The hitman adjusted his hat and began his infiltration of the school. "If you say so."

"Hehe…" A small voice chuckled. "How cute, they're all breaking in." She chuckled as she stared out the broken window of the classroom. The slender figure turned to her comrades who sat on the few desks that remained standing among the broken pieces of the others. "Rather pointless though." The young girl skipped merrily to her seat at the teacher's desk, throwing herself and the chair into a fun little spin. "Silly Vongola be silly."

"They really are lame." A low, sultry voice yawned. His lips let out a sigh, breathing out the tobacco he had inhaled earlier. "Hey, Kuroi. Can I nap?"

The woman chuckled, her eerie voice bouncing around in the dark. "We can't have you slacking off again, Die. You shouldn't have such bad work ethics."

"What work ethics?" He groaned lazily, running his calloused fingers through his messy black hair. "I let luck do my work."

Pale lips formed a pout and later sighed. "I can't argue with it since it hasn't failed yet…" She muttered. She looked out the window once more and smiled as she watched the three girls and their tutor waltz onto school grounds. Oh, the games she had planned made her heart beat with excitement. Her lips curled into a small smile at the thought of their tears and painful cries. She was going to love the pain that she planned to inflict onto their spirits.

She stood up and straightened her dark red skirt. "Well our guests are arriving soon, my friends…" She whispered as she walked across the room to the other end. She smiled once more, her heart filled with the ecstasy at the sight of the damage she had caused earlier. "Smile, dears…" She whispered to the mangled two she stood in front of. Her eyes shifted to the white one, softening at the sight of how he looked at her with disgust. Her cold fingers slowly caressed his bloodied, bruised cheek as she gave a small giggle. She trailed her nails under his chin, almost seductively. She stained her fingertips with the person's blood, her heart beating in her ears at the thought of screwing with his head once more. "More guests have arrived." She whispered into his ear, marking the tip of his nose with his own blood.

He lifted his head, dizzy and weak from the blood loss and his deep wounds. Blood dripped and splattered from his pale lips as he coughed trying to speak. His steel blue eyes were dead cold like a spear ready to kill. He shuddered at the touch of her fingers and his throat swelled with words of disgust for this villain. Yet he was too weak to say anything excessively. All he managed to mutter were two simple words. "Fuck you..."

"My sentiments exactly…" Kyoi wheezed as he coughed up blood, letting the taste of copper violate his senses.

The slender figure knelt down in front of the broken prefect, holding his face in her stained hands gently. She smiled as if she was admiring a glass figurine, gazing into Kyoi's hateful eyes. She could see her bloodstained reflecting in his pools of steel gray. This was amusing, just so very amusing. Namimori's prefect taken down by a simple illusion and the Vongola's second generation bomber was destroyed by his own desire to protect someone he cherished. The irony of it was simply delectable.

"Save your hatred for later when I kill your cute friends in front of you, dears." She giggled. The young miss dropped Kyoi's head, letting it hit hard against the floor with a thud. From a barely-intact desk, she pulled out a sheet of paper, creasing it into careful and neat folds. She pulled a black pen from the same desk, writing in elegant loops her native tongue. "Until then, let see if they can even reach me." She smiled as she let the message fly out the window with a gentle breath.

"You bitch, if you even so much as deal a scratch to the princess…!" Hoseki left his threat incomplete, his teeth clenched tightly together as he winced in pain.

The villain smiled. "Just what can you do in that state? You let yourself be taken down by a fake. If you were really dedicated to your precious 'princess', you'd be able to tell the difference between a fake and the real one." She held in a small giggle, turning her back on the two. "You're either a liar or you're just that blind to how weak your boss really is. Pathetic." She sang.

The sound of something rolling behind her foot caught her ears and the object soon caught her eyes. She gave a bemused chuckle at the explosive at her foot, shaking her head disappointingly. "Is that all you have left?" She asked. The sole of her shoe pressed down hard on the grenade, encasing it in a crystal of indigo hue. "Vongola, Vongola, you piece of shit. How high of a death rate do you wish?" She rhymed. The explosive shattered beneath her foot, rendered useless and vain. She turned on her heels to approach the owner of the grenade. Slowly leaning into his neck, her lips touched his ear, moving as she spoke.

"Let the games begin." She whispered with a cat-like grin.


End file.
